The Mariners should not punish Dylan Moore for last night

I’ll likely be in the minority on this one.

In the 20 years I’ve spent watching baseball, I have never seen a player commit three errors on three consecutive plays. The odds of that happening are mind-boggling low, and the fact that Dylan Moore‘s blunders came at the most critical point in last night’s game makes the whole situation even more unfathomable.

The Red Sox were kept alive, down 6-2 in the top of the ninth, not by a pitcher, but by one sole position player. Just writing that sentence gives me a headache.

It was a disastrous night for Moore, who was making his first career MLB start last night. Outside of the nightmarish ninth inning, Moore went 0-for-4 at the plate with three strikeouts.

The one ball he put in play was a slow-roller to Xander Bogaerts, setting up an easy double play with a runner in scoring position. Overall, Moore left five men on base last night, the highest mark on the team by three.

Thankfully, the Mariners still prevailed 6-5, but not before the boo birds rung loud in the ears of Moore, and the Twittersphere was set ablaze. It should come as no surprise that Moore’s failures provoked an outcry from Mariners fans for the team to either designate Moore for assignment, or send him down to Triple-A Tacoma immediately.

This sentiment, however, is wrong. Clearly the Mariners’ 4-1 start has made fans forget the entire purpose of the 2019 season. Despite the early success, 2019 is less about the win column and more about the development of several of the Mariners’ young players, including Moore.

Selecting the contract of 33-year-old Kristopher Negrón does nothing for the Mariners past this season.

The Mariners are going to be patient with their young players and allow them to fail at the Major League level. Of course, Moore failed at an extraordinary level last night, but the Mariners won’t share the same knee-jerk reaction of its fanbase.

They like Moore a lot. They like him so much that they signed him to an MLB contract, despite being a career minor leaguer.

Despite what fans witnessed last night, Moore has the potential and the tools to transcend being a common utility player and find himself in a Major League lineup on a consistent basis. The Mariners are well aware of this and won’t squander the opportunity to figure out what they have in Moore over one game.

This would be the case even if the Mariners did wind up losing last night. I ask this question to both the Mariners and their fans: what would you rather have? A relatively meaningless win in the first series of a self-identified “step-back- season, or a player that at least has the outside chance of contributing for you by the time you intend on actually competing?

This is the precedent the Mariners need to set for each and every one of their young players, that they will stick with them and allow them to take their lumps. This also doesn’t mean that they are exempt from criticism, but Moore and any other prospect that may come to Seattle and initially struggle won’t benefit from being constantly put under a microscope, and neither will the team.

Just let the kid play and see if he figures it out.