DALLAS -- The 2024 Winter Meetings came and went this week, and to little surprise, the Mariners were mostly quiet. Their biggest news was actually an unforeseen surprise, having secured the No. 3 overall pick for 2025 in the MLB Draft Lottery on Tuesday.

All along, and despite missing the postseason by one game for the second straight season, the Mariners have preached conviction with most of their core from 2024. But that doesn¡¯t mean they don¡¯t have roster voids that they¡¯ve actively been trying to fill.

¡°We've not connected with a player who doesn't have some interest in coming to Seattle,¡± president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said. ¡°Right now, we're pretty attractive, is the way it comes off. But we've been shooting in a very specific window, so we'll see where it leads us.¡±

Biggest remaining needs
That ¡°specific window¡± is at the corner infield spots, given that third baseman Josh Rojas was non-tendered last month and Luke Raley will also be in the outfield mix in addition to first base.

Raley finished last year splitting time at first with veteran Justin Turner, who the club has expressed interest in bringing back. The Mariners have also had conversations about free agent and former D-backs slugger Christian Walker, according to a source, but it¡¯s believed that the first baseman will be out of their price range.

These needs and the litany of infielders slated for second base -- Dylan Moore, Ryan Bliss, Leo Rivas and potentially later in the season, prospects Cole Young and Ben Williamson -- have that position in a ¡°fluid¡± state, Dipoto said, meaning they could acquire a more proven second baseman, then shift that fluidity to third.

The scope of the Mariners' entire offseason could change if they become legitimate suitors for Japanese phenom Roki Sasaki, who was posted by his Japanese club on Monday and will soon begin negotiating with MLB teams. Seattle is expected to make an aggressive pitch for the starting pitcher, which is expected to include help from franchise icon Ichiro Suzuki.

¡°When he was officially posted, internally our feeling was we¡¯re ready for it,¡± Dipoto said.

If the Mariners land Sasaki -- a long shot, according to the industry belief -- they could further fortify one of MLB¡¯s best rotations, or shift strategy toward trading one of their incumbents. Luis Castillo would make the most sense given his age (32) and contract (three years, $73 million). Multiple sources told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand that the industry belief is that Castillo is currently available. The starting pitching market has been this offseason¡¯s most active, suggesting there¡¯d be significant interest if Seattle made any of its arms available.

¡°You have to be influenced by the things that make your team better one way or the other,¡± Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said. ¡°I think that's the first thing you should look at, is how a player functions on your roster. The market sort of is the second question. How does he fit in the scope of the market?¡±

A case could be made that the Mariners could also use back-end bullpen help, though they¡¯re banking on a big portion of this via injury returns from Matt Brash and Gregory Santos.

¡°I would be shocked if we didn¡¯t add some bullpen [depth] along the way this offseason,¡± Hollander said. ¡°We¡¯ve done it every year, even if it¡¯s guys that nobody really has heard of before they turn into something.¡±

Deals done
The only Major League addition that Seattle has made this offseason has been infielder Austin Shenton, acquired in a Nov. 19 trade with the Rays. Shenton was a fifth-round pick by the Mariners in 2019 but was dealt to Tampa Bay at the Trade Deadline in ¡¯21.

Rule 5 Draft
The Mariners did not make a selection in the Major League portion.

GM¡¯s bottom line
The upward trajectory that the Mariners finished on -- 23-11 after new manager Dan Wilson took over -- reinforced the club¡¯s conviction in its foundational pieces, which is why Dipoto and Hollander aren¡¯t overhauling the offense like last winter.

Still, they recognize the disappointment of not playing in October.

¡°I do think I felt better about the way we played for the last five weeks than I did for the first eight weeks, when we were [in first place by] 10 games,¡± Hollander said. ¡°I thought we were up 10 games through no credit that we deserved. We weren't playing very well.

¡°So yes, it gave us some conviction that we are a good team and we hadn't slipped a rung into average or mediocre. I think we believe that today, we have a really good team. But to Jerry's point, we have to find a way to cross that bridge. Like, I'm tired of it.¡±