Major Additions: Jean Segura, Drew Smyly, Yovani Gallardo, Carlos Ruiz, Marc Rzepczynski, Danny Valencia, Jarrod Dyson
Major Losses: Taijuan Walker, Nori Aoki, Seth Smith, Ketel Marte, Drew Storen, Adam Lind
Strengths: Offense, Rotation Depth
Weaknesses: Bullpen, Outfield
Potential Breakout Stars: Mitch Haniger, Dan Vogelbach, Guillermo Heredia, Andrew Moore
This isn't the pitching heavy, offensively fringy Mariners club you're used to seeing. Instead, there is a large amount of impact talent in the field. Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, and Kyle Seager return as the big three power bats, while last year's breakout star Jean Segura (.319/.368/.499, 126 wRC+) was acquired via trade. Segura is unlikely to repeat his big 2016 season, but anything close will give the Mariners four fearsome hitters at the top of their lineup. The catching core, led by Mike Zunino and veteran Carlos Ruiz, is also very solid. Zunino was the third overall pick of the 2012 draft, and while he is yet to tap into his big power at the major league level, consistently striking out in around 34% of his plate appearances, he's still just 25 and shouldn't be counted out. Mitch Haniger and Dan Vogelbach are two power bats that could provide big production this season. Haniger, acquired in the Segura trade, dominated AA and AAA (.321/.419/.581, 25 HR) before knocking five more home runs in his 34 game big league debut. Dan Vogelbach, acquired in a mid-season trade last year, dominated AAA (.292/.417/.505, 23 HR) and has the same chance as Haniger to break out. Danny Valencia is inconsistent, but he hit well last season (.287/.346/.446, 118 wRC+) and is an excellent option off the bench. The pitching staff, interestingly, is as international as any in baseball. The United States (Drew Smyly), Canada (James Paxton), Venezuela (Felix Hernandez), Mexico (Yovani Gallardo), Puerto Rico (Edwin Diaz), Cuba (Ariel Miranda), Japan (Hisashi Iwakuma), and even Brazil (Thyago Vieira) are all represented as pitchers on the big league depth chart. King Felix has been one of the best pitchers in baseball for a long time, though he did have a down year last year (3.82 ERA, 1.32 WHIP). Hisashi Iwakuma is still dealing at 35 years old, James Paxton is as steady as anybody when healthy, and Drew Smyly is the exact opposite. Smyly has flashed dominance (2.60 ERA, 0.69 WHIP in April) while also struggling mightily at times (7.18 ERA, 1.72 WHIP in May). You never know what you're going to get with the 27 year old lefty, but he's as talented as anybody. Yovani Gallardo, Ariel Miranda, and Chris Heston are also wild cards, but you can bet at least one of them will be effective enough to hold down the fifth starter spot. Also rising fast through the minors is Andrew Moore, who has a 2.54 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP over 42 games (36 starts) in his brief minor league career thus far, reaching AA in 2016. It'll be tough for the 22 year old to crack the rotation, given that there are seven capable major league starters slotted in already, but don't count him out. He's joined by Max Povse, Chase De Jong, Dillon Overton, and Rob Whalen as high level prospects trying to crack the rotation. It may not feature any All Stars (aside from Hernandez), but the Mariners will never be scrambling for someone to hand the ball to to start games. In the bullpen, fireballing closer Edwin Diaz is back, as is Nick Vincent. Dan Altavilla and Evan Scribner were excellent in small samples (combined 0.34 ERA, 0.72 WHIP in 26.1 innings), so the Mariners will be excited to see what a full season entails for them, especially the 24 year old Altavilla. Marc Rzepczynski and Casey Fien are a pair of newcomers to the bullpen via free agency, though overall, if there is one way to beat Seattle, it's through the bullpen before Edwin Diaz comes in to pitch.
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