Seattle, WA

Morosi: Factors to watch in potential Mariners trade for Juan Soto

Published

1 year ago

October 20, 2023

Morosi: Factors to watch in potential Mariners trade for Juan Soto

While the MLB postseason continues on, Seattle Mariners fans are looking ahead to the offseason, which kicks off almost immediately after the World Series ends.

Seattle Mariners Offseason: Key dates for the rest of 2023

All eyes in the Pacific Northwest and the rest of the baseball world will be focused on where two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani signs.

While this isn’t the best or deepest free agent market on the hitting side, that doesn’t necessarily mean superstar hitters aren’t available.

One name that has been floated for a while is Juan Soto, a 24-year-old outfielder who currently plays for the San Diego Padres.

Soto debuted at just 19 years old for the Washington Nationals in 2018, and he’s set to hit free agency after next season.

The Padres went all-in this past season with MLB’s No. 2 payroll and missed the postseason, and now there’s some thought that Soto could be dealt.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic listed the Mariners as one of five teams who could potentially make a move for the All-Star hitter.

Seattle Sports host Mike Salk recently wrote about trading for Soto being the best thing the Mariners could do this offseason.

Salk: Why best thing for Seattle Mariners is to trade for Juan Soto

MLB Network insider Jon Morosi had more to say about the idea of Soto landing with the Mariners during his Wednesday conversation with Seattle Sports’ Wyman and Bob.

“I think that all things are in play for Soto,” he said. “The Padres, they’re such a kaleidoscope of options right now. Obviously, there’s a lot of talk at the end of the season (where) some people thought that perhaps (manager) Bob Melvin would not be back or that (general manager) A.J. Preller would not be back. To this point in time, both of them are going to come back.”

Morosi thinks Soto’s future with San Diego could be centered around what the Padres do or don’t do with the starting rotation this offseason/

“I look at this team and say, they are going to have to not only upgrade the rotation from where it was this year, but if they lose Seattle’s own, Blake Snell in free agency, then what?” he said. “Is their first choice to trade Juan Soto? No, I don’t think it is. I think that their first choice is to keep them. But his agent is Scott Boras and I’ve got zero – zero – indication that he’s about to sign an extension (with the Padres). So as long as that’s the case, I think that maybe they go through the possibilities and see if they can upgrade their rotation via free agency.”

If the Padres lose Snell and are unable to boost the rotation elsewhere, that could make the Mariners a logical partner, Morosi said, given Seattle having plenty of young, good and controllable starting pitchers in the mix.

“If they’re sitting there on Jan. 5, and they say, ‘Oh my gosh, we don’t have a rotation that we like right now, and we can’t sign Soto and the Mariners have all this pitching, let’s call Jerry Dipoto,’” he said.

Dipoto is, of course, the Mariners’ main decision maker when it comes to baseball operations. Morosi noted that Dipoto is known for making trades, as is Preller. In fact, the two have linked up for multiple trades over the last few years.

“So as long as all those things are true, I would say that we’ve got to keep a candle lit for this one. I mean, it’s not going to happen tomorrow. But I do think that in the universe of possibilities, I would say that is at least as plausible as the notion of Ohtani coming to Seattle,” Morosi said. “I’m sure we’ll spend a lot of time on Ohtani. I tend to think he’s going to go somewhere else. By that I’m saying I think that the Soto idea, we should give equal airtime to because I think it is basically just as conceivable as Ohtani, if not more so.”

Listen to Wyman and Bob’s full conversation with Morosi at this link or in the player near the top of this story.

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Seattle, WA

State ferries: A better idea from Nordic countries

Published

5 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

State ferries: A better idea from Nordic countries

Re: “Diesel or hybrid ferries? How about simply reliable” (Jan. 7, Opinion): Gov. Jay Inslee, Gov.-elect Bob Ferguson and The Seattle Times editorial board are asking the wrong question: diesel or hybrid ferries? Inslee and the majority of Democrats support…

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Seattle, WA

Manhunt underway for Mason County shooting suspect

Published

14 hours ago

January 10, 2025

Press Room

Manhunt underway for Mason County shooting suspect

Manuhunt underway for Mason County assault suspect

Mason County deputies are looking for a man wanted in a shooting in Belfair on Monday.

MASON COUNTY, Wash. – The Mason County Sheriff’s Office is currently searching for a convicted felon wanted in a recent shooting.

The sheriff’s office says Michael Allen Beyer is wanted for first-degree assault and first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm.

Deputies believe Beyer was involved in a shooting that happened in Belfair on January 6.

Beyer is considered armed and dangerous. If you see him, do not approach him and call 911 immediately.

Anyone with information regarding Beyer’s whereabouts is asked to call Detective Helser at 360-427-9670 x657, or Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).

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Seattle, WA

Two more Seattle restaurants close due to minimum wage hike

Published

22 hours ago

January 9, 2025

Press Room

Two more Seattle restaurants close due to minimum wage hike

Two more Seattle restaurants are calling it quits thanks to the untenable minimum wage hike.

At the same time that the Seattle minimum wage rose from $19.97 an hour to $20.76 an hour, the city ended the tip credit of $2.72. Under the previous rules, restaurants were able to pay $17.25 hourly wage if their staff earned at least $2.72 in tips per hour. But as cost of business continues to skyrocket in Seattle, a minimum wage hike without a tip credit is simply untenable for many small businesses.

Jackson’s Catfish Corner in Seattle’s Central District closed its doors in this new year. In an interview with Converge Media, owner Terrell Jackson argued Seattle is too expensive to operate in.

“I know that the minimum wages went up to 20 bucks an hour … I know that’s hard for my business as a small Black business,” Jackson said. “I’m not Amazon or Walgreens or Walmart who can pay their employees that much.”

Jackson isn’t alone in his complaints.

More from Jason Rantz: Panic as Seattle restaurants may not survive massive minimum wage shift

A second West Seattle eatery closes, citing the minimum wage hike

Bel Gatto, a bakery and café, became the second West Seattle eatery to close its doors over the Seattle minimum wage hike. The owner posted a sign to the front door to thank supporters but said she can’t afford to stay open anymore.

“Our revenues, unfortunately, are not able to cover the close to 20% increase in mandated wages, salaries and payroll taxes put into effect by the Seattle City Council effective 1/1/25. This ruling has made the continuation of our bakery operations untenable,” the sign read.

The owner, Peter Levy, explained to the West Seattle Blog that, “we were approaching close to a break even status in the last quarter of 2024, but the requirement to absorb another $4,000 per month in payroll expenses with the new mandate by the city put a break even further from our grasp which is what led to the closure.”

Last week, a video by Corina Luckenbach, owner of Bebop Waffle Shop in West Seattle, went viral as she said the minimum wage hike was forcing her to close after 11 years. She said she didn’t have an extra $32,000 a year to pay her staff what the city mandates.

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Will more restaurants close?

Ahead of the minimum wage hike, restauranteurs offered many warnings over what’s to come.

Ethan Stowell operates a number of Seattle’s top restaurants, including How to Cook a Wolf, Staple and Fancy, and Tavolata. He warned this change would be exceptionally costly for businesses in an industry notorious for razor-thin margins. And restaurants can’t merely raise menu prices again.

“I know everybody wants to say, ‘Just raise things (on the menu) a dollar or two,’ and that’s what it’ll be. That’s very simplified math. I wish it was that easy, but it’s not. This is a large increase that’s probably large enough to be equal to or close to what most restaurants in Seattle profit,” Stowell told “The Jason Rantz Show” on KTTH.

Portage Bay Cafe co-owner Amy Fair Gunnar noted the minimum wage change will cost her about $45,000 more a month. She said restaurants will have to “seriously change what they’re doing or they’re going to close their doors.”

More from Jason Rantz: Here’s why Seattle residents vow to stop tipping in new year

Ignoring the warnings, mocking the business people

The warnings from restaurant owners were mostly ignored or mocked.

Efforts by the Seattle City Council to address the forthcoming crisis fell apart after activists said they didn’t want restaurants to get an exception. Council president Sara Nelson told “The Jason Rantz Show” they will take up the issue again this year but there’s no specific idea yet to forward for legislation. The Mayor of Seattle, Bruce Harrell, has been almost completely absent from the issue.

Left-wing voices, meanwhile, claim to not care. That if businesses “can’t afford to pay a living wage,” then they shouldn’t be in business.

One reporter with The Stranger mocked one of the closures, quipping on X, “Has anyone ever eaten at bebop waffle lol.” Left-wing Seattleites condemned the business for “creating a right wing media darling to complain about paying people a living wage.”

KING 5 reporter Maddie White helped elevate this talking point by citing the National Low Income Housing Coalition, claiming “the average renter needs to make upwards of $40 an hour to afford rent.” But she’s quoting a stat for two-bedrooms. Minimum wage jobs aren’t meant to cover the cost of a single person renting a two-bedroom home or apartment.

Ironically, as activists dismiss the concerns of small business owners, they fail to acknowledge the inevitable consequence: when those businesses shut down, people lose jobs. A $20.76 hourly minimum wage — even with a $2.72 tip credit — means nothing if you’re unemployed.

Listen to The Jason Rantz Show on weekday afternoons from 3-7 p.m. on KTTH 770 AM (HD Radio 97.3 FM HD-Channel 3). Subscribe to the podcast here. Follow Jason Rantz on X, Instagram, YouTube and Facebook.

Follow @https://twitter.com/jasonrantz

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