The Seattle Mariners just keep adding speed and power to a fun offense to watch. Unfortunately, they are in a stacked AL West, so they need to keep adding arms and bats to keep up with the Joneses.
Seattle GM Jerry DiPoto has been one of the most active general managers since taking over control in late-2015. He keeps the Mariners in the conversation and has made large trades (Dee Gordon) and small trades that could pay dividends this season (Ryon Healy).
Can Seattle make the playoffs for the first time since 2001?
Here is the 2018 MLB season preview for the Seattle Mariners.
2017 Win/Loss Record: 78-84
Key Additions: OF Dee Gordon, 3B Ryon Healy, RP Juan Nicasio, RP Chasen Bradford, SS Andrew Romine, OF Kirk Nieuwenhuis, C David Freitas, RP Nick Rumbelow RP Erik Goeddel & OF Junior Lake
Key Losses: OF Jarrod Dyson, 3B Danny Valencia, 1B Yonder Alonso, RP Tony Zych, RP Emilio Pagan, SP Yovani Gallardo & SP Andrew Albers
Interleague Schedule: NL West
Projected Starters: Mike Zunino, Dan Vogelbach, Robinson Cano, Kyle Seager, Jean Segura, Ryon Healy, Dee Gordon, Mitch Haniger & Nelson Cruz
Projected Starting Rotation: James Paxton, Felix Hernandez, Mike Leake, Marco Gonzales & Ariel Miranda
Closer: Edwin Diaz
Fantasy Sleeper: OF Mitch Haniger – He came out of the gates on fire last season. He basically came out of nowhere and was hitting all categories. He then injured his oblique and was also hit in a bad spot with a fastball. His numbers dipped down the stretch, but some of that may have been due to not getting regular at-bats. He should start in right this season and I think he could be much, much better than expected.
Prospect To Keep Your Eye On: None – The Mariners have been using their farm system to fund trades to help their big league squad. There aren’t really any minor league talent that will help the Mariners this season.
Team Analysis: I really like what the Mariners are doing with their team. They aren’t afraid to make bold trades like when they sent Taijuan Walker to Arizona or acquiring Dee Gordon from the Marlins for prospects. They aren’t too far away from being a contender in the American League.
One move I would like to see the Mariners make this season is to acquire one more starter. Ariel Miranda would be a solid end-of-the-rotation guy on most teams, but if Seattle really wants to catch the Angels or Astros in the AL West, they have to keep making improvements to their rotation. They were smart enough to grab Mike Leake from the Cardinals last season and they should look to make another move like that again.
The Mariners were the best 78-win team last season. It sounds like I’m being condescending, but they were a tough team to beat for a large portion of the season. If they can get King Felix back to his old self and keep James Paxton healthy, they should easily be a .500+ team in 2018.
2018 Wins Over/Under Betting Line: 82 (Prediction: OVER)
2018 Projected Win/Loss Record: 83-79 (3rd in AL West)
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About the Author…
Bobby Roberts (otherwise known as Sweetbob) is the creator of ‘America’s White Boy’ and contributor at Project Shanks. His writing has been featured on ESPN’s ‘SportsNation’, Sports Illustrated’s Hot Clicks, Guyspeed, and various other sites. You can follow him on Twitter at @Sweetbob.