The Seattle Mariners’ season has been pretty straightforward. The team boasts baseball’s best rotation – led by All-Star ace Logan Gilbert – and one of the most anemic offenses in the league. The combination has kept Seattle in the postseason hunt but prevented the team from dominating the division.
The organization recognized its primary weakness and attempted to address it at the trade deadline. The Mariners brought in Randy Arozarena in a deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. And while Arozarena was the headline move for the team’s offense, Seattle also added Justin Turner. The 39-year-old veteran has performed well in 86 career postseason games and won a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The team hopes he can provide clubhouse leadership as well as offensive production.
The Mariners also bolstered the bullpen at the trade deadline. While Seattle’s starters have been exceptional this season, the team needed to strengthen its relief pitching. The Mariners added Yimi Garcia in a deal with the Toronto Blue Jays and JT Chargois in a trade with the Miami Marlins.
Now that the trade deadline has passed, the Mariners must find a way to address two major concerns that continue to plague the team. Seattle needs to add a left-handed reliever to the bullpen and further improve the infield’s offensive production.
Overall the Mariners did very well for themselves at the trade deadline. It would be a shame to waste a rotation that ranks first in baseball in ERA, batting average against, WHIP, FIP and fWAR. So Seattle filled out the team with a handful of beneficial trades.
While the bullpen has improved a great deal with the presence of Garcia and Chargois, the group still ranks middle of the pack in ERA (11th), FIP (12th), WPA (15th) and fWAR (17th).
The Mariners’ bullpen is led by Andres Munoz, who’s been terrific this season – as has Austin Voth. And Seattle recently called Troy Taylor up from the minors. The 22-year-old rookie had an excellent debut against the New York Mets, allowing no hits, no runs and striking out two batters in one inning of work on Sunday. Taylor looked great in his first MLB action but he jumped from Double-A directly to the majors so it’s uncertain how reliable he’ll be down the stretch and into the postseason if Seattle makes the playoffs.
The team should be on the lookout for another arm to fill out the bullpen. Although it’s difficult to add a high leverage reliever after the trade deadline, there are options available for the Mariners.
The Mariners must add a lefty relief pitcher
Generally speaking, if a player is available at this point in the season, they’re available for a reason. On the flipside, landing a free agent for a playoff push doesn’t involve a major financial commitment, making such acquisitions low risk/high reward.
There is a glaring need in Seattle’s bullpen that needs to be addressed. Specifically, the team is lacking left-handed relief pitchers. Ideally the Mariners would add a lefty to the pen to give manager Scott Servais the ability to play the matchup and get big outs against left-handed hitters.
If Seattle goes this route, they should kick the tires of two free agent lefty relievers who have yet to find a team in 2024. Aaron Loup is one option. The 36-year-old veteran last pitched for the Los Angeles Angels in 2023. Loup didn’t have his finest season last year, posting a whopping 6.10 ERA, 1.747 WHIP and 45 strikeouts in 48.2 innings. However, he was better the year before with a 3.84 ERA in 58.2 innings and he was exceptional in 2021 for the New York Mets when he had a 0.95 ERA, 0.935 WHIP, 9.1 K/9 and an ERA+ of 422 in 65 appearances.
Loup’s dominant days as a reliever are probably over. But it’s possible he could still be counted on to get a big out in specific situations. He’s pitched reasonably well in 13 postseason appearances and he could likely be signed on the cheap.
The Mariners could also pursue Brad Hand. The 34-year-old lefty reliever was with the Atlanta Braves in 2023 but remains a free agent in 2024. Hand had one of the worst seasons of his career last year, producing a 5.53 ERA, 1.416 WHIP and 9.9 K/9 in 53.2 innings with the Braves and the Colorado Rockies. But the 13-year veteran was excellent for the Philadelphia Phillies in 2022. That season he put up a 2.80 ERA, 1.333 WHIP and an ERA+ of 143 in 55 appearances.
Hand has also dominated left-handed batters throughout his career. Lefties are slashing just .193/.272/.302 against him overall. Even in a disappointing campaign last year, Hand could be counted on against left-handed hitters. In 2023 lefties slashed .200/.297/.288 against him. It’s possible that Hand could be limited to only facing lefty batters but if he can reproduce similar numbers, he would be worth picking up for the Mariners’ playoff push.
Seattle could also look within the organization to fill out the bullpen. Brandyn Garcia is a 24-year-old lefty who’s pitched well across two levels of the minors this season, per MLB.com. Like the Mariners’ recent call up Troy Taylor, Garcia would be asked to skip Triple-A and jump directly from Double-A to the majors. The other issue is that Garcia is currently working as a starter. Still, with a high-90s two-seamer, a cutter and a slider, he has the stuff to be a relief pitcher. Seattle could bring him up as a bullpen piece this season and let him continue as a starter next year.
After shoring up the team’s relief pitching the Mariners must address their offense. Although the team improved with the additions of Arozarena and Turner, the trade deadline upgrades haven’t had a tremendous impact on the offense yet.
The Mariners went from 28th to 21st in runs after the deadline deals. They also improved in OBP (26th to 12th), slugging percentage (26th to 24th), OPS (27th to 19th) and fWAR (20th to 18th). However they regressed in batting average (29th to 30th), home runs (10th to 18th) and WPA (18th to 21st) albeit in a small sample size.
The Mariners unexpectedly got Julio Rodriguez back from the injured list on Sunday. Rodriguez had been on the 10-day IL since sustaining a high right ankle sprain on July 21. The two-time All-Star center fielder was Seattle’s designated hitter in his return to the team. If Rodriguez rounds into his 2023 form and mid-season addition Victor Robles continues his hot hitting alongside Arozarena, the Mariners outfield looks set.
Seattle brought Robles in after he was released by the Washington Nationals in May. Since joining the Mariners, Robles has been one of the team’s best hitters. Seattle rewarded his play by signing Robles to a two-year, $9.75 million extension.
With Rodriguez locked in until 2030 and Arozarena under club control until 2027, the Mariners have a very strong young core in the outfield. However, the lineup still has holes that need to be addressed – particularly at first base and DH.
Belt could provide support
The deadline addition of Turner helped address those issues but the Mariners could certainly use an extra bat. Brandon Belt is a solid option for Seattle. The 36-year-old veteran performed well in 103 games for the Toronto Blue Jays last season. Belt had 19 home runs with an .858 OPS and an OPS+ of 136 in 2023. While he’s yet to find a team this season, Belt could have plenty left in the tank. Additionally, he would bring postseason experience and leadership to the Mariners. Belt has played in 39 postseason games and has been a part of two World Series victories.
Seattle doesn’t have many options to help fill the first base/DH hole in the farm system. The team brought 23-year-old prospect Tyler Locklear up from Triple-A to spot start at first. Unfortunately, it looks like Seattle jumped the gun with Locklear as he’s struggled mightily in the majors.
The Mariners could call up their top prospect Cole Young to provide some middle infield support, which is even more necessary with J.P. Crawford out of action on the 10-day IL. Seattle selected Young with the 21st overall pick in the 2022 draft. He’s played fairly well in the minors, showing promise as a contact hitter with base stealing ability. But he’s only advanced to Double-A and isn’t expected to play in the majors until 2025. While bringing him up could pay off for the team, it could also impede his development.
The Mariners are a half game behind the first-place Houston Astros in the AL West entering play on Tuesday. Seattle is seven games over .500 and two games behind the Kansas City Royals for the third American League Wild Card berth.
After a very successful trade deadline, the Mariners must address the two biggest concerns facing the team – the bullpen and infield offense. With the right moves, Seattle appears poised to make a strong postseason push.
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