2022 was supposed to be Seattle Mariners year. They were going to snap their 20-year MLB Playoffs drought and make the postseason after falling just short in 2021. But as of May 26th, the Mariners are in last place in the AL West. They even trail the Oakland A's who traded almost every notable name on their roster over the offseason.
So what is the issue? Is this simply a case of bad luck? Or is there a reoccurring pattern within the Mariners organization?
Here are 3 reasons the Mariners are continuing to struggle in 2022.
3 Reasons Mariners Continue to Struggle Amid 20-year MLB Playoffs Drought
Taking Chances on “Stars”
The Seattle Mariners have attempted to increase the talent on their roster by adding players coming off of good seasons. It is a pattern that has repeated itself for many years now.
But the players they sign don't always have a steady track record. And if they do, Seattle has displayed a willingness to overpay for them.
For example, the Mariners signed a pitcher by the name of Carlos Silva to a 4-year $48 million dollar deal after he was coming off of multiple bad seasons in 2008. As many teams around MLB predicted, Silva pitched poorly for Seattle and was eventually traded. Other similar examples include Chone Figgins, Scott Spiezio, Rich Aurilla, Jeff Weaver amongst many others.
Some of you may not recognize any names on that list. And that only enhances the point. It is hard to understand what the Mariners front office's mindset is when it comes to inking new talent.
And that trend has continued into 2022.
Seattle traded for 2021 All-Star Jesse Winker and third baseman Eugenio Suarez from Cincinnati Reds over the offseason. Suarez was coming off of a terrible year while Winker displayed plenty of struggles against left-handed pitching, leading many to question his starlike ability.
And both Jessie Winker and Eugenio Suarez are hitting exactly .216 as of this story's publication.
Surprisingly, a similar sentiment can be attributed to reigning AL Cy Young winner Robbie Ray. Ray hadn't posted an ERA under 4 since 2018 prior to his 2021 Cy Young campaign.
Naturally, the Mariners emptied the bag and handed Robbie Ray a 5-year $115 million dollar deal at age 30. The result? Ray has an ERA approaching 5 through the 2022 season's early going.
Could Winker, Suarez, and Ray turn things around? Absolutely.
But the point stands. Seattle takes risky chances on “stars” and ignores the warning signs.
The Mariners Don't Have an Identity
Sports teams develop identities. MLB teams are especially known for this.
The Atlanta Braves developed an identity as a pitching factory in the 1990's. The New York Yankees have always been known as an offensive-based team.
The San Francisco Giants and St. Louis Cardinals have become known as teams that play quality defense and do all of the little things right. And of course, the Oakland A's even had a movie made about their famous “Moneyball” strategy.
But who are the Seattle Mariners?
Sure, they had some excitement in the 90's. But their stars ended up leaving without a World Series ring.
The Mariners are honestly best known as the team that once had Ken Griffey Jr. and Ichiro. And that is it.
Seattle's front office needs to take a moment and figure out who they are. Do they want to focus on hitting? Build a deep lineup and consistently score runs?
Or they could become a pitching powerhouse. Young Logan Gilbert could lead the way.
The way the team is currently constructed, it seems as if they just threw something together without a ton of planning and hoped it would work. They have a couple of quality hitters, and a few solid pitchers. And there is nothing wrong with the all-around balanced approach (just ask the Dodgers).
But the Mariners don't have enough good hitters or good pitchers to be a “balanced team.”
If they can forge an identity, then Seattle will begin to win some ball games.
Bad Luck
Okay, I've given the Mariners a ton of flack up to this point. However, there is no denying the fact that this team has endured some bad luck.
A perfect example is the Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz for Jarred Kelenic trade they made with the Mets. On paper, that was a rather savvy move by Seattle. They added a top-tier prospect with extremely high potential and shed Robinson Cano's pricy contract.
But Kelenic has stumbled in his MLB experience and was recently sent down to Triple-A. While other top prospects such as Vladimir Guerrero Jr and Fernando Tatis Jr took off and immediately became stars, Kelenic has been unable to produce much of anything at the big league level.
And he isn't the first Mariner with impressive credentials to struggle with the team.
In closing, the MLB world is rooting for the M's to make a postseason run sooner than later. But they need to turn things around as soon as possible in 2022 if they want to snap their 20-year postseason drought.
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