3 storylines for Mariners Spring Training
Daniel Kramer
@DKramer_This story was excerpted from Daniel Kramer's Mariners Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
SEATTLE -- Spring Training is finally on the horizon, and for the Mariners, their incredibly -- albeit expectedly -- quiet offseason will come to an end Wednesday, when pitchers and catchers undergo physicals at the Peoria Sports Complex in Arizona. They¡¯ll be joined on Feb. 18 by position players, though some have already descended on the desert.
Seattle essentially plans to run it back with virtually all of the group it ended the 2024 season with, minus Trade Deadline acquisition Justin Turner and platoon third basemen Josh Rojas and Luis Urias, and relievers Austin Voth and JT Chargois.
¡°We didn¡¯t anticipate a great deal of movement around the team,¡± Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto recently told reporters. ¡°We¡¯re still open to adding if the opportunity to add exists out there. But we feel like this is a good team, and if this is our team going into Spring Training or Opening Day, we¡¯re pretty excited by it.¡±
That¡¯s one of three major storylines entering camp.
1. Did Seattle do enough this offseason?
Whether outsiders agree with the front office¡¯s logic, the decision-makers are clear with their conviction to a strong offensive finish in 2024. But after missing the postseason for two consecutive years, each as the first team on the outside looking in, this question can¡¯t truly be answered until this October.
With roughly only $15 million to work with in roster spending this winter, the Mariners added Donovan Solano ($3.5 million) and returned Jorge Polanco ($7.75 million) on one-year contracts. But they steadfastly kept their elite rotation intact, and it¡¯s a group they believe can catapult them in any playoff series.
Yet it¡¯s objectively a roll of the dice, especially with many proven players at specific positional needs either signing or traded elsewhere because they were out of Seattle¡¯s price range.
2. Wilson¡¯s first camp
Taking over amid turmoil when replacing nine-year manager Scott Servais in late August, Dan Wilson now firmly has the keys to the car, and it¡¯ll be fascinating to see how he handles his first spring, especially given that he¡¯s been a regular fixture at this time of year from his previous roles.
In coordination with Dipoto and general manager Justin Hollander, Wilson has assembled a coaching staff with much more old-school tendencies, headlined by the return of Edgar Martinez in his new role as senior director of hitting strategy and the hiring of longtime Braves hitting coach Kevin Seitzer to the same role in Seattle.
The simple messaging they preached over the final five weeks of last season that players say resonated will be a focal part to Seattle¡¯s offensive success, and it¡¯ll finally be on display in Arizona with the new group.
3. Eyes on the farm
Though second baseman Cole Young (No. 49) is the lone representative among Seattle¡¯s MLB Pipeline Top 100 Baseball Prospects expected to vie for playing time this season, countless faces of the future will be in camp and worth following.