The MLB free agency class for the winter is starting to come into focus, but when it comes to the Seattle Mariners, there’s one player whose status remains uncertain: Jorge Polanco.

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The Mariners benefited from one of the best years of Polanco’s career in 2025, as he slashed .265/.326/.495 for an .821 OPS with 26 home runs and 78 RBIs, and there’s little doubt that Seattle would like to keep the American League Silver Slugger finalist at second base in the mix for 2026.

There was potential good news in early September when Polanco reached 450 plate appearances, vesting a player option for 2026 at $6 million. But then Polanco not only finished the season on a tear, but he proved to be clutch for the Mariners in the playoffs.

Suddenly, the $6 million salary for Polanco next season looked like way too much of a bargain for him to pick up the option, bringing the possibility of him going to free agency for a second straight year back to the forefront.

That’s not to say Polanco is as good as gone, though. And if he wants to stay in Seattle, this is a very big week to keep an eye on the situation.

That’s because the Mariners have a few days remaining where they and they alone can negotiate with Polanco on a new contract.

MLB rules allow teams to have an exclusive negotiating window with their own pending free agents for five days between the end of the World Series and the official beginning of unrestricted free agency. In this case, with the Los Angeles Dodgers beating the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 to win the title on Saturday, the Mariners have until 5 p.m. Thursday to negotiate exclusively with Polanco or any of their other free agents – such as first baseman Josh Naylor and third baseman Eugenio Suárez.

It stands to reason that with Naylor and Suárez heading to free agency, Polanco would be a big priority for Seattle to retain as a proven offensive threat with experience playing at every infield position (though most sparingly at first and third).

As things stand, the Mariners have 2025 rookies Cole Young and Ben Williamson at the top of the depth chart at second base and third base, respectively. They also have 28-year-old utility infielder Leo Rivas on the roster. While each of those three players had their moments last season, they’re all unproven with subpar hitting numbers in their limited time in the big leagues.

Polanco was a bit of a surprise returning player for the Mariners this year. He struggled after coming to Seattle as a key offseason trade acquisition before the 2024 season, hitting just .213 in 118 games while playing through a knee injury that wasn’t disclosed until after the season. The Mariners brought Polanco back on a one-year, $7.75 million deal last February that came with a pair of potential player options for 2026: the aforementioned $6 million option if he reached 450 plate appearances in 2025, and an $8 million option if he reached 550 plate appearances (he had 524). Polanco also earned an extra $2.5 million in 2025 based on incentives tied to his plate appearances, per Spotrac.

A 32-year-old switch-hitter, Polanco played the first 10 years of his career with the Minnesota Twins, who he had initially signed with as an amateur free agent in 2009 out of the Dominican Republic.

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