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Seattle Mariners All-Dipoto Acquisition Team: Bench

BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 20: Omar Narvaez #22 of the Seattle Mariners throws to second base during a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 20, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 20: Omar Narvaez #22 of the Seattle Mariners throws to second base during a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 20, 2019 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
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The final entry in our All-Dipoto Acquisition team is here as we round out the roster with five more names.

Up to this point, we’ve gone through 21 names: the team’s 13 pitchers and its eight starting infielders and outfielders. Some have been obvious additions, while others have come as a surprise, even to us, and some have even have even slightly bent the rules of this experiment to crack the roster.

Outside of those 21 names, however, is an abundance of players we had to comb through to complete this exercise. Jerry Dipoto‘s brought in a lot of guys to Seattle who have contributed in some form or fashion and trimming our decision down to five players wasn’t as easy as one may think.

Some fairly big names were excluded from this list. Fan-favorites, quality role players, and everything in between, these were pretty tough decisions to make. Eventually, we landed on the five names that made sense for our roster, if we were going to actually field this team to play in 2020 (if sports could be played under regular circumstances, of course).

SEATTLE, WA – MARCH 28: Edwin Encarnacion #10 of the Seattle Mariners rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the third inning of the 2019 Opening day game against the Boston Red Sox at T-Mobile Park on March 28, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
SEATTLE, WA – MARCH 28: Edwin Encarnacion #10 of the Seattle Mariners rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the third inning of the 2019 Opening day game against the Boston Red Sox at T-Mobile Park on March 28, 2019 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

EDWIN ENCARNACIÓN

As the decade progresses, Edwin Encarnación’s time in Seattle will be no more than a quirky bit of a trivia. Honestly, we’re probably at that stage already. Nevertheless, when Encarnación was acquired from the Cleveland Indians along with a Competitive Balance Round B pick in the 2019 MLB Draft for Carlos Santana, there was no doubt that his Mariners career would be short-lived.

Prior to being traded to the Yankees last June, just a little over two-and-a-half months since donning the navy and teal for the first time, Encarnación filled in for the recently departed Nelson Cruz quite nicely as the Mariners’ designated hitter. Getting on base at a .356 clip, Encarnación walked in 19% of his 289 plate appearances, crushing 21 home runs to the tune of a 1.6 fWAR.

For the All-Dipoto Acquisition Team roster, Encarnación will serve as our primary designated hitter. This decision, as well as the one to make Evan White our starting first baseman, ultimately means that Daniel Vogelbach will not make that cut. And if the Encarnación inclusion didn’t make that clear enough, maybe the next player will.

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