With the Brewers wrapping up the World Series last night, the first day of Hot Stove season is upon us, and with it comes a bevy of decisions on options – player, club, and mutual – across the league. In the Mariners’ case, they had three club options to resolve for Andrés Muñoz, Víctor Robles, and Bryce Miller, and the org announced this afternoon that they have picked up Muñoz’s for $10 million, while opting to decline both Miller’s and Robles’s at $6.075 million and $9 million, respectively.
None
of these decisions should come as a surprise. While Muñoz battled through a career-worst season, blowing an eye-popping ten saves and seeing his ERA more than double from 2025’s 1.73 to 4.24, underlying numbers suggest a strong chance for a bounceback next year. He posted the best strikeout and walk rates (37.1% and 10.0% respectively) since his first full season with Seattle in 2022, which led to a FIP of 3.34 – nearly identical to his first All-Star season in 2024. A surprising homer problem was the main culprit of Muñoz’s struggles, as he allowed nine after serving up just two in 2025 despite his ground ball rate holding steady. An uptick in hard-hit rate in 2026 could be cause for concern, but with his kick change continuing to develop into a real weapon against left-handed hitters – his kryptonite for the first couple months of 2026 – it would come as no shock to see him as his usual self in 2027.
Víctor Robles stole the hearts of Mariners fans with a scintillating 2024 season upon his arrival to Seattle after the Nationals cut bait, bursting onto the scene with 3.2 fWAR and a 155 wRC+ across 262 plate appearances, while bringing tremendous baserunning and solid outfield defense. The M’s rewarded him with a two-year, $9.75 million extension with the aforementioned club option for 2027, but the injury hits kept coming for Robles over the next two seasons, as he limped to a composite 81 wRC+ and 0.3 fWAR combined 263 plate appearances. When healthy, however, he remained a strong baserunner, and it’s not out of the question that Seattle opts to bring him back on a cheaper deal or as a non-roster invitee. As things stand with Lázaro Montes and Michael Arroyo standing in the open doorframe, though, it seems likely that he will move on to a team with some more room in their outfield. If this is the end, thanks for all the memories, Vic.
Despite Bob Nightengale continuing to be Bob Nightengale, Bryce Miller remains under team control after the org declined his club option, opting to pay a $15K buyout. During negotiations last winter, Miller and the Mariners reached an agreement on a one year contract at $2.4375 million for 2026 alongside the club option. While he improved on an injury-wracked 2025 after returning from the IL in May, cutting his season ERA from 5.68 to 4.17 and FIP from 5.17 to 4.41, the wheels fell off in the second half as he posted a 6.05/5.63 ERA/FIP after the All-Star break, with a brutal August (9.00/6.35 ERA/FIP in 20 innings) doing much of the heavy lifting. With Kade Anderson making a strong first impression and Ryan Sloan waiting in the wings, Miller’s time as a starting pitcher in Seattle may be coming to an end. He’s set to enter his second year of arbitration, with MLB Trade Rumors projecting him to earn $3.9 million.
The Mariners’ 40-man roster currently sits at 35, with eight players on the 60-day injured list that will need to come off in the next several days.
