General manager Jerry Dipoto said he plans to add a pitcher to his roster. The failure to sign Ohtani seems to push that direction toward a starting pitcher as the MLB Winter Meetings begin on Monday.
So now what?
The sting of losing Shohei Ohtani still lingers for the Mariners. To put that much effort, time, resources and emotion into wooing one player only to see him wind up with one of your American League West rivals is a storyline similar to an angst-filled teenage melodramatic movie.
Now all the possibilities that seemed within reach for the Mariners with Ohtani seem much farther from their grasp with another stacked team in their division to go with the already-loaded, defending World Series champion Astros.