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What will the Mariners outfield look like on Opening Day 2020?

By Aaron Chantler |
OAKLAND, CA - JULY 16: Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners dives for this ball that goes for a double off the bat of Ramon Laureano #22 of the Oakland Athletics in the bottom of the six inning at Ring Central Coliseum on July 16, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
OAKLAND, CA - JULY 16: Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners dives for this ball that goes for a double off the bat of Ramon Laureano #22 of the Oakland Athletics in the bottom of the six inning at Ring Central Coliseum on July 16, 2019 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images)
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The current outfield for the Seattle Mariners has been a mess recently due to injuries and the team deciding to play utility players or career infielders out there instead of acquiring a true outfielder (they did just claim Keon Broxton off of waivers) or promoting an outfielder like Jake Fraley or Ian Miller from Triple-A Tacoma.

With the strength of the Mariners minor league system revolving around outfielders, it’s not hard to get excited about what could lie ahead in the spacious outfield of T-Mobile Park; however, those prospects most likely won’t arrive at the start of the 2020 season, so it’s time to take a look at who could man the outfield for the Mariners at the start of next year.

For the purpose of this exercise, I will only be filling the outfield with players currently in the organization. Obviously, with general manager Jerry Dipoto at the helm the outfield options could change quickly, but let’s start by looking at the current Mariners roster.

A quick peek at the roster shows only two true outfielders on the active roster: Mallex Smith and Domingo Santana (Mitch Haniger and Braden Bishop are on the IL, but will be used for this exercise). Broxton hasn’t been officially added to the roster at the time of this writing, which is why the Mariners have been using the likes of Tim Beckham, Dylan Moore, Kristopher Negron, and Ryan Court in the outfield. The current crop of “outfielders” certainly isn’t evoking memories of Griffey and Buhner or Ichiro and Mike Cameron.

So where does the team go from here? Let’s break it down:

The Lock

SEATTLE, WA – MAY 29: Mitch Haniger #17 of the Seattle Mariners hits a two-run home run off of relief pitcher Drew Smyly #33 of the Texas Rangers that also scored Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners during the sixth inning of a game at T-Mobile Park on May 29, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – MAY 29: Mitch Haniger #17 of the Seattle Mariners hits a two-run home run off of relief pitcher Drew Smyly #33 of the Texas Rangers that also scored Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners during the sixth inning of a game at T-Mobile Park on May 29, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

Of the outfielders currently in the organization the one “lock” for the outfield next year is Haniger. “Lock” is in quotation marks because Dipoto would have no problem trading Haniger if the right package came along; however, due to Haniger’s unfortunate injury that is currently sidelining him, Dipoto wouldn’t get top value for Haniger this winter.

Given the circumstances surrounding Haniger right now, it is easy to see why he will be patrolling the outfield for the Mariners on Opening Day. As we saw the last off-season, Haniger is someone that Dipoto mentioned as wanting to build around. An All-Star when healthy, Haniger will be a key component for the Mariners desires to be more competitive in 2020.

Odd One Out

MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – JUNE 25: Daniel Vogelbach #20 of the Seattle Mariners celebrates with Domingo Santana #16 of the Seattle Mariners after hitting a two run home run in the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on June 25, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN – JUNE 25: Daniel Vogelbach #20 of the Seattle Mariners celebrates with Domingo Santana #16 of the Seattle Mariners after hitting a two run home run in the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park on June 25, 2019 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Quinn Harris/Getty Images) /

Santana will not be in the Mariners outfield next year and is unlikely to still be with the team. Arguably the most likely of the current group of outfielders to get traded, Santana would be tough to fit into the Mariners outfield next year.

His defensive blunders this year have been tough to stomach, but his offensive output has made him a consistent threat in the Mariners lineup. With that said though in today’s game it’s hard to fit one, let alone two, bat first players onto a Major League roster.

Unless they decide to move Santana to first base (and he proves he can handle the position), there isn’t room for him and All-Star Daniel Vogelbach in Seattle since neither provides defensive value. Since Santana does offer some value on the base paths his market would be larger than Vogelbach’s as teams will always be on the lookout for players with his offensive skill set.

The Holdover

SEATTLE, WA – JULY 27: Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners is congratulated by teammates in the dugout after scoring a run on a double by Tim Beckham #1 of the Seattle Mariners off of starting pitcher Tyler Alexander #70 of the Detroit Tigers during the fifth inning of a game at T-Mobile Park on July 27, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners won the game 8-1. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – JULY 27: Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners is congratulated by teammates in the dugout after scoring a run on a double by Tim Beckham #1 of the Seattle Mariners off of starting pitcher Tyler Alexander #70 of the Detroit Tigers during the fifth inning of a game at T-Mobile Park on July 27, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners won the game 8-1. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images) /

Smith is the next holdover that will be in the outfield come the start of the 2020 season. I almost left him off as I believe Trader Jerry could look to move him in the offseason, but I doubt the Mariners will want to break in two rookie outfielders at the start of the year. Smith has been much better since his call up from Tacoma, but look for Smith to be playing left field next year instead of center.

PEORIA, ARIZONA – MARCH 06: Braden Bishop #5 of the Seattle Mariners hits a three-run home run against the Oakland Athletics during the spring training game at Peoria Stadium on March 06, 2019 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
PEORIA, ARIZONA – MARCH 06: Braden Bishop #5 of the Seattle Mariners hits a three-run home run against the Oakland Athletics during the spring training game at Peoria Stadium on March 06, 2019 in Peoria, Arizona. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /

You were expecting Fraley, weren’t you? Picking Fraley would have been the easy way out. If Fraley comes up later this year and performs well, then yes, he will be in the Opening Day outfield for the Mariners.

But the Mariners might also want to control his service time and have him open the season next year in Tacoma where he would be reunited with his former Arkansas Travelers teammates that will also be in Tacoma next year.

That opens the door for Bishop to crack the opening day lineup in center field. If Bishop hadn’t suffered his own unfortunate injury then he’d be the everyday center fielder right now. The Mariners need to figure out what they have in Bishop. Is he an everyday outfielder, or better suited as a fourth outfielder on a good team?

Having him start the season as the everyday center fielder would allow Fraley a little more seasoning on the farm, and allow the team to manipulate his service time if needed (even though no team will ever claim they are doing that).

SEATTLE, WA – JULY 26: Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners is doused in Gatorade by teammate Tim Beckham during a postgame interview after hitting a walk-off single against the Detroit Tigers at T-Mobile Park on July 26, 2019, in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners beat the Tigers 3-2. (Photo by Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – JULY 26: Mallex Smith #0 of the Seattle Mariners is doused in Gatorade by teammate Tim Beckham during a postgame interview after hitting a walk-off single against the Detroit Tigers at T-Mobile Park on July 26, 2019, in Seattle, Washington. The Mariners beat the Tigers 3-2. (Photo by Lindsey Wasson/Getty Images) /

The Opening Day outfield for the Mariners would be a major improvement defensively than the one we are currently watching. While it might be a light on pop, it would make up for it with speed and two players (Haniger and Bishop) with above-average defensive abilities.

While it is doubtful this would be the Mariners outfield all season long, it wouldn’t be a bad place to start.

The team could look to move Smith and/or Haniger with strong first halves. If Bishop struggles or shows he’s better suited to be a fourth outfielder, then Fraley could slide into his spot. The nice part is there is depth in the minors if injuries occur, and that depth would most likely be in Tacoma rather than the low minors.

Instead of being forced to play guys like Beckham and Negron, the team would have Fraley, Kyle Lewis, and Dom Thompson-Williams in Tacoma waiting for a chance with Jarred Kelenic and Julio Rodriguez on the horizon of the upper minors.

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