Nick Franklin is the more valuable of Seattle's now expendable second basemen, but Ackley is getting some attention as well.
The Padres, Mets and Yankees have all inquired about the availability of Mariners second baseman Dustin Ackley, reports Jon Heyman of CBS Sports.
Ackley and his keystone compatriot, Nick Franklin, have seemingly become expendable parts in the wake of Robinson Cano's 10-year pact with Seattle, so it's probably only a matter of time before one of them is traded away. Just which one ends up departing likely depends on what kind of return the Mariners are looking to get.
Ackley, 25, was one of the top prospects in the game a few years ago and put up solid numbers in his 2011 rookie campaign, but has fallen on hard times the last two seasons. The lefty-hitting infielder has batted just .236/.304/.333 with 16 home runs since 2012 -- well below expectations for a guy whose hit tool was supposed to be his best asset.
The Mariners used Ackley as something of a super-utility player in 2013, splitting his time between second, center field, left field and first base. It's unclear whether the interested parties would continue to have him play a multi-positional role or try to reestablish him as a full-time second baseman.
The Yankees' need for help at the keystone is well known, and it would be somewhat fitting for them to end up with one of the Mariners' second basemen not named Cano. New York signed Kelly Johnson, a similar player to Ackley, to a one-year deal last week though, so it's unclear where they benefit from adding essentially a duplicate.
The Padres and Mets both have incumbent second basemen on their rosters -- Jedd Gyorko and Daniel Murphy, respectively -- who are under team control for a few more seasons, so Ackley doesn't seem to fit on their rosters at the moment. New York is reportedly shopping Murphy around this week, however, so perhaps Ackley is a potential candidate to replace him should he move.
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