There are plenty of baseball teams for which the notion of being in a pennant race is all but a foregone conclusion every year.

After all, the St. Louis Cardinals have reached the postseason in ten of the past fourteen years, making four World Series appearances (winning twice). The New York Yankees have secured a playoff spot an astounding seventeen out of nineteen years. The Red Sox, Dodgers, Angeles, A's, Braves and Giants seem to generally rise to the top — or at least threaten to — more often than not.

And then there are the Seattle Mariners, baseball's version of Charlie Brown. Most years, they count themselves lucky not to be sumarily flattened.

Amazingly, this isn't 'most years'. The surprising Mariners have rounded the far turn with a 1 1/2 game lead for the second wild card spot. With the trade deadline fast approaching, what moves should Seattle make in order to leverage its chances of making the playoffs for the first time since 2001?

Go 'All In' to Acquire David Price

When Seattle landed star second baseman Robinson Cano this past winter, managment sent a clear message to its success-starved fan base: winning now was a priority. The interminable rebuilding project was deemed to be over, even if it appeared to be needing yet another reboot based upon last year's disastrous 71-91 campaign.

Mariners fans far and wide were thrilled to see the club make a big move like the Cano signing, even if it seemed as if they hadn't completed the puzzle with enough complimentary pieces. Offensively, that concern remains, evidenced by Seattle's team batting average at a paltry .245 and the club posting the A.L.'s lowest OPS (.674).

Pitching has been the bailywick of the club, with the M's either first or second in the league in ERA, runs against, earned runs against, hits allowed, batting average against, WHIP and saves. However, any significant regression to the mean from King Felix, Hisashi Iwakuma, Chris Young and the other starting pitchers could spell doom for Seattle's chances this year. The offense simply cannot be counted on to carry the club.

Enter David Price.

David Price is clearly the jewel of the trade market this season and is almost certain to be dealt by the Tampa Bay Rays. Despite having already announced that he will not sign an extension with Seattle beyond the end of his contract in 2015, the Mariners are apparently willing to accept that risk. Seattle is alleged to be offering top prospect Taijuan Walker as the centerpiece of a deal for Price and super utilityman Ben Zobrist.

It will certainly take more than Walker to land both players. Shortstop Brad Miller has been rumored to be under discussion, as has left fielder Dustin Ackley and a few lesser prospects. Regardless, with far too many holes in the lineup to completely fix the offense this year, the M's need to do lean on their existing strengths and do what it takes to see David Price firing fastballs in Safeco Field for the next 1 1/2 seasons. The prospect of facing Felix Hernandez, David Price and Hisashi Iwakuma in a playoff series would send chills down the spines of any potential opponent.

Trade For Marlon Byrd

Seattle cannot solve its offensive woes at the trade deadline, but something needs to be done to counter the myriad of popups and strikeouts by guys like Dustin Ackley, Brad Miller and Justin Smoak.

Yes, Byrd received a 50 game suspension for PED's in 2012. He's also 36, slow afoot and would be switching leagues to boot. Clearly, he entails some degree of intrinsic risk.  That said, judging by his .232 batting average, 54 strikeouts and .630 OPS, so does incumbent left fielder Dustin Ackley.

Given the risks stated above, Byrd would cost far less than David Price. One or more of the same players (minus Walker) would be part of any deal, plus prospects and possibly cash going one direction or another. Would he be worth it?

Marlon Byrd has slugged 18 homers and driven in 54 runs so far this year, posting an OPS of .792 — substantially higher than Ackley's below league-average number. Instantly, the M's would have the middle-of-the-order bat they had hoped Corey Hart would provide. Byrd is said to be insisting his 2016 option be guaranteed in order to approve a trade to Seattle (the M's are said to be on his limited no-trade list), which would mean the Mariners would be paying a likely-declining Marlon Byrd a serious amount of coin in a couple of years.

It doesn't matter. This is management's best chance in nearly a decade to show the fans they aren't merely about dollars and cents. They have already set precedence with the Cano contract, and with the opportunity in front of them to build the franchise after over a decade of cost-cutting and general decline, they need to seize the day. Picking up a cleanup hitter who, even considering the $8 million price tag, compares favorably to Alex Rios, seems well worth the financial risk.

There you have it. Price (and possibly Zobrist) and Byrd potentially in the fold for a combination of underperforming younger players, a rookie starter and prospects. It's the kind of bold moves this improbable season demands Jack Zduriencik make.

We'll know how things shake out by July 31.