The Seattle Mariners have been making big time moves to improve their team. Read to find out why they’re pushing all the right buttons right now.
Seattle Mariners continue to get stronger
After their most promising season in a while, the Mariners are on a mission to prove that 2021 wasn’t a fluke. They went 90-72 and missed a Wild Card berth on the final day of the regular season.
Since then the Mariners have been making huge strides to ensure that they stay in a winning position for the future. This team knows how competitive their division is, and they’re here to win right now.
Offseason Improvements
The Mariners have had a top five offseason of any MLB team as they traded for All-Star 2B/OF Adam Frazier and inked reigning AL Cy Young Robbie Ray to a five year/$115 million contract. On top of that, now that the lockout is over, Seattle has just made a big move, acquiring Cincinnati Reds’ All-Stars OF Jesse Winker and 3B/SS Eugenio Suarez on Monday afternoon.
Winker was a 2021 All-Star who hit .305 with 24 homers and 71 RBI through 110 games. He also finished with a .394 OBP, .556 SLG and .949 OPS. Winker is a consistent hitter who noticeably elevated the Cincinnati offense during his five seasons there, never batting worse than .255.
Suarez on the other hand is far from consistent in the batting average department as he hit an abysmal .202 in 2020 and followed that up by batting .198 in 2021. However, what Suarez lacks in consistent batting average he at least partially makes up for with his power numbers. Suarez has hit 95 homers since the 2019 season, and not counting the shortened 2020 season, he has hit 25+ every season since 2017.
Suarez hit 31 homers and drove in 79 runs last season. His trade to Seattle was likely more to get his contract off the Reds’ hands than anything else, but his ability to hit dingers in droves is undeniable.
Winker and Suarez are going to add way more chances for run creation for an offense that can use all the runs it can get. Despite some reliable hitters in Mitch Haniger, Ty France and J.P. Crawford, this is a Seattle team that finished last in team batting and hits.
When you put Winker, Suarez and Frazier all into the mix for the Mariners’ offense, chances to score and score consistently are really going to open up.
On the pitching side, Robbie Ray will be a reliable ace for an already underrated Mariners rotation that was middle of the pack last season.
Season Preview
The Mariners’ depth has already greatly improved, and their confidence as a team is going to skyrocket after the moves they’ve made this offseason.
After an offseason in which they’ve only improved coming off a 90 win season, Mariners fans have a lot of reason to feel optimistic. This team is being slept on right now, and they’ve added even more talent over this offseason.
The AL West is going to be more competitive than ever, with the Astros and Angels both very much having their eyes on the division crown. That makes divisional matchups that much more important for Seattle the entirety of the season.
The Mariners will open their 2022 regular season campaign in Minnesota for a four game set with the Twins and then face the White Sox in Chicago for three before coming home to take on the Astros.
It’s a long season as every baseball fan knows, but the Mariners can’t afford to get off to a slow start. Seattle knows the history of losing that they’re fighting as a franchise and this season is a chance to begin a new era in Seattle Mariner baseball.
There’s no doubt that optimism is through the roof for Seattle right now, but starting on Opening Day that optimism needs to translate to consistent wins.
