While the Mariners’ sky-high expectations may have seemed a bit unrealistic heading into spring training, the Cactus League did very little to slow the roll.
As All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano said a few weeks ago: “On paper, we look like a world champion.”
New addition Nelson Cruz showed the power and offensive consistency that the Mariners hope to see when the real games begin, the pitching staff stayed relatively healthy, and most of the bats that make up Seattle’s rebuilt outfield were off to a good start.
People in Seattle are wondering whether the Mariners are on the verge of becoming a World Series contender, but the truth is there are a few question marks heading into the most anticipated Seattle baseball season in more than a decade.
Top two starters Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma showed signs of wear down the stretch last season, despite manager Lloyd McClendon’s efforts to ease their load, and youngsters like James Paxton and Taijuan Walker have yet to prove that they can stay healthy and effective over an entire major league season.
Like Seattle’s rotation, the lineup looks good on paper but isn’t without holes. Center fielder Austin Jackson still has to prove himself at the top of the order, while there are legitimate offensive questions at shortstop, first base and catcher as well.
That being said, this team is built with far fewer questions than any Mariners squad in recent memory. The talk about Seattle finally being a contender is real — but a few things have to fall into place to make it happen.
Getting Cruz to handle the cleanup spot between Cano and third baseman Kyle Seager shored up Seattle’s most glaring need in a big way. Now the Mariners hope some of the other possible holes don’t start getting leaky as they attempt to make a run at their first division title since 2001.
A contender? No doubt. An October lock? No way.
ROSTER REPORT
ROTATION:
1. RHP Felix Hernandez
2. RHP Hisashi Iwakuma
3. LHP J.A. Happ
4. RHP Taijuan Walker
5. LHP James Paxton
The addition of Happ gave Seattle some options at the back of its rotation, meaning this could be the first time in a few years that the Mariners won’t have to pluck a veteran off the street to fill out their rotation. He’s a solid
addition who’ll probably give 26-year-old lefty Roenis Elias a chance to get some quality starts at Triple-A after the rookie burst onto the scene last year but faded down the stretch.
The success of Seattle’s rotation begins at the top, where Hernandez is as good as anyone in the game but he has also thrown a ton of innings over his career (1,976 1/3 since 2006, the most in baseball). Hernandez turns 29 in April but has the arm use of a guy in his mid-30s. Iwakuma, who turns 34 in April, has shown even more signs of overuse. The Mariners did everything they could to cut down the innings of both starters last year, and manager Lloyd McClendon might have to sneak a few five- and six-day layoffs between starts again to keep them fresh if this team is still going to play in October.
Paxton and Walker have been up-and-coming phenoms for awhile, but this is the year when the Mariners just need them to be solid parts of the rotation for the long haul. Paxton’s limited spring makes him a candidate for the No. 5 spot, which the Mariners won’t need until the second week of the season because of an early off day.
BULLPEN:
RHP Fernando Rodney (closer)
RHP Danny Farquhar
RHP Dominic Leone
RHP Yoervis Medina
RHP Tom Wilhelmsen
LHP Charlie Furbush
LHP Tyler Olson
Seattle’s relief pitching has been as good as any bullpen in baseball over the past two seasons, despite a lack of big names. The big question this year is whether the 38-year-old Rodney can turn in another All-Star performance. There were times over the first half of last season when he looked a pitch or two away from going off the rails, but he held on and was playing some of his best baseball by season’s end.
Farquhar and Wilhelmsen are former closers who thrived in new roles last season, while Furbush has emerged as a reliable left-handed specialist and one of the most consistent relievers on the team. It’s possible the Mariners could open the season with just one southpaw in the bullpen, especially after Rule V draft pick David Rollins was suspended 80 games for violating baseball’s substance-abuse policy.
Seattle seems to unearth quality major league relievers out of their farm system every year, and Smith looks like the latest flame-thrower to be on the verge of a breakout year.
LINEUP:
1. CF Austin Jackson
2. RF Seth Smith/Justin Ruggiano
3. 2B Robinson Cano
4. DH Nelson Cruz
5. 3B Kyle Seager
6. 1B Logan Morrison
7. C Mike Zunino
8. LF Dustin Ackley
9. SS Brad Miller
No other team bolstered its lineup with the addition of one player as much as the Mariners did with Cruz. If he can come anywhere close to the 40-homer total he had in Baltimore last season, it would be worth the contract, but Cruz’s presence between Cano and Seager is valuable even if he doesn’t put up All-Star numbers.
Jackson and the new right-field platoon at the top of the lineup will be key factors to this team’s offensive success early on, while keeping Morrison healthy and somewhat consistent could be the difference between Seattle having a good offense or a great one.
Former prospects like Ackley, Miller and Zunino don’t have time to endure any more growing pains; the Mariners need them to produce now.
RESERVES:
C Jesus Sucre
UT Willie Bloomquist
UT Rickie Weeks
Seattle has plenty of versatility, especially if Weeks can make the successful transition to the outfield and give the team a few games at first base. Weeks has the potential to provide the kind of pinch-hit power no Mariners
offense has had in years, while the return of Bloomquist from injury gives Seattle options all over the field.
The right-field platoon of Justin Ruggiano and Seth Smith will leave one veteran bat available on the bench, and there are more than a few options at Triple-A if Seattle needs to change things up.
MEDICAL WATCH:
–SS Chris Taylor (fractured wrist) is expected to be out until late April after taking a pitch off his arm in a Cactus League game.
