Seattle Mariners: 3 darkhorse candidates to contribute in 2020

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Mariners fans have been made well aware of the big names in the organization’s farm system, but they’re not the only ones who could have an impact on Seattle’s 2020 campaign.

Atop the Mariners’ laundry list of items in 2020 is supplying several of their top prospects with consistent opportunity at the Major League level, but there’s always the hope of finding success in unexpected avenues. Whether it be a veteran hoping to revitalize their career on a minor league contract, an aging prospect who bursts onto the scene out of nowhere, or a struggling Major Leaguer who’s figured things out, there always seems to be a few players that benefit from a perfect storm each year.

Last year, the Mariners had a few of their own. Austin Nola and Tom Murphy are the two biggest names that jump off the page; the former being a seven-year minor leaguer who finally got his MLB break at the age of 29 and ran with it, while the latter’s career was seemingly coming to a close after several seasons of offensive struggles before arriving in Seattle and finishing the 2019 season as one of the best offensive and defensive catchers in the game.

Murphy and Nola have now gone from lottery tickets to mainstays on Seattle’s roster in less than a year’s time, which begs the question: can the Mariners find something similar this season? Let’s look at a few players who may be able to fit the mold.

BALTIMORE, MD – SEPTEMBER 21: Daniel Vogelbach #20 of the Seattle Mariners bats against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 21, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) /

DH Daniel Vogelbach

It may seem awkward at first to include Vogelbach on this list considering he was the Mariners’ lone All-Star selection last year, but his rough second half of the 2019 season has now put his safety on the 26-man roster into question. Before the All-Star break, Vogelbach slashed .238/.375/.505 with 21 home runs and an incredible 17.9% walk rate. Afterwards, the walks stayed about the same, but the strikeout numbers skyrocketed and his slash line for the final two-and-a-half months of the year slid to an atrocious .162/.286/.341.

With Evan White now set to open the season as Seattle’s starting first baseman, Vogelbach is now cemented exclusively as a designated hitter, providing nothing to the team aside from his bat. That’s not to say that Vogelbach was previously valuable whatsoever on the defensive side, but now there’s no other place for him to go—he has to hit.

This adversity isn’t new for Vogelbach, however. At this time last year, there was much doubt about his future within the Mariners’ organization, given how frustratingly reluctant they were to give him consistent playing time. That’s a bit different this year, and now that teams have figured out how to attack him, it’s a matter of him being able to adjust or not. At the very least, the capability to put up big numbers is there, which puts him at the top of this list.

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – JUNE 04: Carlos Gonzalez #2 of the Chicago Cubshits a run scoring double in the 2nd inning against the Colorado Rockies at Wrigley Field on June 04, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /

OF Carlos González

Look, I sometimes forget Jay Bruce and Edwin Encarnación played for the Mariners and they were with the Major League club for the majority of the first half last year. Come October, when it’s time to review the Mariners’ 2020 season, I’ll randomly remember that Carlos González once donned the navy and teal as a non-roster invitee this spring. Or perhaps, somehow, some way, González will be fondly planted in my mind as someone who revitalized his career in Seattle and helped ease the pain of losing Mitch Haniger for a good part of the season… but probably not.

Okay, okay, jokes aside, it’s not entirely impossible that CarGo still has something left in the tank. He’s just a year removed from a 1.8 fWAR campaign in his last season with the Rockies, slashing a solid .276/.329/.467. Yes, he was really bad in 2019, and yes, the bat speed has gone down, but screw it—I’m on the CarGo bandwagon. We saw a similar turnaround last year in the form of Hunter Pence in his stint with the Rangers, where he went on to put up numbers worthy of an All-Star selection.

Outside of Mallex Smith, the Mariners have very little Major League experience in their current outfield group. With Haniger out indefinitely, González is going to see ample opportunity to make the club, and any sort of success on his part would be huge for a team that could benefit from giving Kyle Lewis and/or Jake Fraley some more time in Triple-A.

LHP Anthony Misiewicz

No one understands the uncertainty of playing in a Jerry Dipoto led organization better than Anthony Misiewicz. Selected by the Mariners in the 18th round of Jack Zduriencik’s last draft as the team’s general manager, Misiewicz was shipped off to Tampa Bay in a 2017 midseason swap that netted Seattle Ryan Garton and Mike Marjama. Just months later, Misiewicz was reacquired by the Mariners for international bonus pool money.

Misiewicz has been average at best for most of his professional career, but really came on for Double-A Arkansas last year in limited time. In 35.2 innings pitched, he posted a 2.02 FIP with a 9.08 K/9 and 1.77 BB/9. He then went on to throw another 95.2 innings in Triple-A where he was obliterated, but so was practically every other pitcher at that level, so we’ll throw that away.

Should the Mariners look into Yasiel Puig?. dark. Next

The 25-year-old southpaw pushes 90 with his fastball and showed some growth with his two breaking pitches. If he can continue to build upon the positives of his 2019 campaign, there may be something there to land him an opportunity at the back end of the Mariners’ rotation in the event of the inevitable injury or two, though he’ll also be at the back of a long line of reserves that starts with Nick Margevicius, Justin Dunn, Wei-Yin Chen, and Logan Gilbert.

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Mariners fans have been made well aware of the big names in the organization’s farm system, but they’re not the only ones who could have an impact on Seattle’s 2020 campaign.

DH Daniel Vogelbach

OF Carlos González

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