The Seattle Mariners are close to re-signing first baseman Josh Naylor to a five-year contract on the free-agent market, ESPN reports. If finalized, it will be the first major free-agent signing of the offseason.
Naylor, 28, is coming off a 2025 season in which he slashed .295/.353/.462 in a combined 147 games for the Diamondbacks and Mariners. Seattle acquired Naylor from Arizona leading up to the trade deadline. After the trade, Naylor had an OPS+ of 138 in 54 regular-season games for the Mariners en route to their winning the American League West title for the first time since 2001. Naylor in the ALCS batted .417 with three home runs. The Mariners lost that series in seven games to the Toronto Blue Jays.
Naylor in 2024 as a member of the Guardians earned his first and thus far only All-Star selection. For his career, he owns an OPS+ of 116 with a WAR of 8.4 over parts of seven MLB seasons.
Coming into the offseason, CBS Sports ranked Naylor as the No. 23 available free agent in the class. Here’s part of R.J. Anderson’s write-up:
To oppose Naylor is to grow weary of his excitable, borderline vexatious qualities. To embrace him is to grow appreciative of his skilled offensive game, particularly against righties. Naylor has a knack for squaring up the ball that, when combined with his strength and pull-and-lift tendencies, enables him to launch 20ish home runs annually. It’s to be seen if his next employer lets him run as freely as the Mariners did, but even if not he should remain a worthy most-days option at the cold corner.
Seattle this winter is aiming for as much roster continuity as possible as they remain in contending mode. “Same goals, same priorities,” general manager Justin Hollander told reporters at the recent GM meetings in Las Vegas. “I think No. 1 for us is ideally keeping as much of the group that we had last year, that we really believed in, together. And then filling in the rest of the roster as required. Our offseason is largely going to start with the guys who were on the team last year and try to bring as many back as possible.”
With Naylor now back in the fold, the M’s may turn their attention to their two remaining notable free agents, third baseman Eugenio Suárez and infielder Jorge Polanco.