Seattle Mariners

Report: Mariners have 'real interest' in Nori Aoki

Published Nov. 30, 2015 10:11 p.m. ET

foxsports

New Seattle Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto has been active in reshaping the M's roster in recent weeks, and Hot Stove buzz now has the club interested in free agent outfielder Nori Aoki.

Bob Dutton of the News Tribune passed along the report on Monday, indicating that the team has 'real interest' in Aoki's services:

"At this point," one industry source said, "there appears to be real interest (in Aoki) from the Mariners. Whether that leads to a deal is anybody’s guess."

Aoki spent 2015 with the San Francisco Giants after starting his MLB career with the Milwaukee Brewers and Kansas City Royals, but things didn't go especially well this past season: after being hit by a Jake Arrieta pitch in early August, Aoki played a few weeks before post-concussion symptoms forced him to end his season early in September. Prior to that incident, he also dealt with a fractured fibula that sidelined him for a while as well.

However, Aoki's stat line (.287/.353/.380) was in line with his career average (.287/.353/.386) in 2015 despite all those obstacles. Within that context, it seems plausible that he'd be able to be a consistent offensive presence in the lineup - assuming the post-concussion symptoms are no longer an issue, of course.

Dipoto shored up the M's defense in center field with the acquisition of Leonys Martin, but signing Aoki would definitely be an offensively-minded move given his adventures in the outfield (not to mention his career dWAR of -1.1).