If he can play there. Would we give him more than 10 games to figure it out though? We've already dumped 3 SS (Franklin, Miller and Taylor) because they weren't ideal for us. Franklin is a UT guy like Motter for TB. Miller is a horrendous SS but the kid can hit, and is hitting (he was a 30/30 man last year, jeez). Taylor had 30 bad games and got shipped out and is now buried behind a future All-Star (and a Seager to boot so he's never giving that position up or taking a day off, obviously).
IMO this year we've already traded 3 of our top-10 farm arms (Orozco, De Paula, Littell) for some positionally versatile part-timers. Gohara if he goes would make 4. That's what you call Gillicking your system, although Pat did it through forfeiting draft picks and having a general indifference to the farm. That might be fine if you're a step away from a WS and adding the needed talent comes at a cost, but it bankrupted the Mariners' ability to restock from within. # of homegrown All-Star bats between A-Rod and Seager: zero. # of All-Star arms between Felix and now? Pineda, I guess, who pitched here for exactly one season.
These aren't the trades that hurt now, but we had JUST found a little bit of a restock in farm talent and it's going away. It puts a lot of pressure on the farm to keep the one right arm or right bat, and the "right arm" isn't always the healthy arm. It means Gohara, Neidert and Moore HAVE to work out, because there are only relievers behind them (although keep an eye on LJay Newsome - I like that kid if he can find a few mph as he ages). We're not trading from a position of strength, but the Cruz/Cano/Felix window is only cracked open a little longer. And it's not like we're adding All-Stars. Here's hoping the bits around the outside that DiPoto IS adding can help the core. Otherwise watching this team crumble because the farm simply cannot replace what is lost could be quite frustrating.
Again.