As the offseason has progressed, the more the Seattle Mariners seem to be involved in rumors and speculation.

Offseason comments from team owner/chairman John Stanton and General Manager Justin Hollander have made it seem like the makeup of the 2025 Mariners will be very similar to what fans saw in 2024.

But even with these comments, Seattle has been linked to international free agents from South Korea and Japan, multiple All-Stars and Gold Glove winners and familiar veterans.

Heading into Friday, fans are still waiting to see if any of the smoke clears behind the club bringing in any of these players, and what the team’s future roster will look like.

A former Mariners infielder recently discussed his own future on a popular podcast on Friday.

Kolten Wong, who has been a free agent since May 27, spoke about his desire to continue playing and his openness to crossing borders to continue his baseball career on the “Foul Territory” podcast:

“I’m kind of open to anything. Even internationally. It’s a big deal for me, I always talked about being able to end up in Japan one day… I did it in college. Got a chance to do it with Team USA , I loved it, but just loved the atmosphere and everything about it, so it’s something I’m also considering done yet so I want to continue.

Wong played 67 games for the Mariners in 2023. He hit .165 with two home runs and 19 RBIs. He was released on August 3, 2023, and signed a minor league contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers on August 9 of that year. He played 20 games for the Dodgers and hit .300 with two home runs and eight RBIs.

Wong has not appeared in a major league game since. He signed a minor league contract with the Baltimore Orioles and was invited to spring training but was later released. He signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 10 but was released by their Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces, on May 27.

Wong is a two-time Gold Glove winner with a solid contact tool and 15-home run power, but the 12-year veteran has taken a noticeable decline at the plate since 2022.

Wong can end his career with a successful stay in Japan. Another former Seattle player, Mike Ford, recently won the Nippon Professional Baseball Japan Series with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars.

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