Busy Mariners could add veteran starter at Meetings

SEATTLE — As general manager Jerry Dipoto and the rest of the Mariners’ brass fly to the Winter Meetings outside Washington, D.C., on Sunday, they’ll be lighter on baggage than many other clubs headed to the four-day gathering.

The Mariners already have done much of their heavy lifting and roster shifting, with Dipoto engineering six trades in the past month that checked off many of his offseason goals. Additionally, Seattle finalized a two-year deal with free-agent lefty reliever Marc Rzepczynski on Saturday that fills another glaring need.

Rzepczynski’s additions means Seattle will arrive at the Meetings with just one specific pursuit remaining — bolstering the rotation with a veteran to fill the hole created by last week’s Taijuan Walker trade to Arizona.

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“Obviously we have been very active these last few weeks,” Dipoto said. “But we are looking to add some more depth and potential impact to our rotation. … Beyond that, there’s not a whole lot we’re likely to do between now and Spring Training.”

The free-agent market figures to open up more now at the Winter Meetings and beyond. While starting pitching is thin, Dipoto says there are several candidates who could fit well with the Mariners and he’ll pursue all avenues to fill that need in the coming days.

MLB.com and MLB Network will have wall-to-wall coverage of the 2016 Winter Meetings from the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. Fans can watch live streaming of all news conferences and manager availability on MLB.com, including the Rule 5 Draft on Dec. 8 at 6 a.m. PT.

Club needs

Rotation: Dealing Walker to the D-backs in a five-player swap that brought back shortstop Jean Segura lessened Seattle’s starting depth. The club still has five returners in Felix Hernandez, Hisashi Iwakuma, James Paxton, Ariel Miranda and Nathan Karns, and Dipoto added to that pool by acquiring prospects Rob Whalen and Max Povse from the Braves. But the Mariners used 13 starters last year, and Dipoto will look to bolster that group with the addition of a veteran who could fit into the middle of the rotation, if possible, and perhaps allow Miranda to be used as a lefty …

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