Mariners Roundtable: Grading the M’s Offseason

Another problem last season was inconsistent production from a number of key spots. Dipoto targeted players this winter who might not be household names, but they consistently get the job done. Wade Miley is unspectacular, but he has pitched at least 193 innings in each of the last four seasons. Nori Aoki is unlikely to be an All-Star for Seattle in 2016, but he sports a .353 career on base percentage. Joaquin Benoit has posted a sub 3.00 ERA in five of the last six seasons. Reliable players are typically quite expensive, and Dipoto has done a great job adding talent on a budget.

My favorite move this winter was trading for Adam Lind. The 32-year-old has been exceptionally consistent during his 10-year career, and he is a professional hitter. Lind boasts a .291/.364/.478 slash line over the last three seasons with 49 home runs and 194 RBI. He will likely hit fifth or sixth this season for the Mariners, and he really lengthens the lineup. Southpaws give him fits, but Lind tears apart right-handed pitching. I believe Lind provides the M’s with their best first baseman since the ‘good’ Richie Sexson.

The reason I did not give Dipoto an ‘A’ is because of the man he hired to run the team on the field. Scott Servais spent parts of 11 years behind the plate in the big leagues. He has also been a scout and executive since the early 2000’s. However, the 48-year-old has never been part of a coaching staff at any level. If you have coached a little league team, you have more coaching experience than Servais. This is troubling to me. I hope Servais proves to be a solid hire, but I would feel more comfortable with a known quantity in the M’s dugout.

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BRIAN HELBERG

B+

The 2015 Mariners lacked many things necessary to be winners, but the most glaring issue was a lack of depth. Jerry Dipoto has done a fantastic job addressing this weakness. The starting rotation has seven quality pitchers competing for five spots. The bullpen may not have many stars, but they have plenty of veteran arms. There will also be numerous infielders and outfielders playing in Tacoma this summer who are more than capable of playing at Safeco Field. This kind of roster depth serves as protection against injury and poor production. Thanks to a very busy offseason, Dipoto has a number of interesting options to play with this season.

Another problem last season was inconsistent production from a number of key spots. Dipoto targeted players this winter who might not be household names, but they consistently get the job done. Wade Miley is unspectacular, but he has pitched at least 193 innings in each of the last four seasons. Nori Aoki is unlikely to be an All-Star for Seattle in 2016, but he sports a .353 career on base percentage. Joaquin Benoit has posted a sub 3.00 ERA in five of the last six seasons. Reliable players are typically quite expensive, and Dipoto has done a great job adding talent on a budget.

My favorite move this winter was trading for Adam Lind. The 32-year-old has been exceptionally consistent during his 10-year career, and he is a professional hitter. Lind boasts a .291/.364/.478 slash line over the last three seasons with 49 home runs and 194 RBI. He will likely hit fifth or sixth this season for the Mariners, and he really lengthens the lineup. Southpaws give him fits, but Lind tears apart right-handed pitching. I believe Lind provides the M’s with their best first baseman since the ‘good’ Richie Sexson.

The reason I did not give Dipoto an ‘A’ is because of the man he hired to run the team on the field. Scott Servais spent parts of 11 years behind the plate in the big leagues. He has also been a scout and executive since the early 2000’s. However, the 48-year-old has never been part of a coaching staff at any level. If you have coached a little league team, you have more coaching experience than Servais. This is troubling to me. I hope Servais proves to be a solid hire, but I would feel more comfortable with a known quantity in the M’s dugout.