Who is the Seattle Mariners Second Baseman in 2021?

Seattle Mariners Option No. 1 – Dylan Moore

Dylan Moore’s Mariner career up this point has been nothing short of impressive. He was signed as a Minor League free agent in the offseason of 2018, then subsequently made the team out of spring training.

Unfortunately, his Major League career got off to a rocky start, spearheaded by errors on three straight plays in the ninth inning of a cold March ballgame. After witnessing that performance in-person, I was not sure how much longer Moore would be on an MLB roster.

However, the 28-year-old Moore has certainly been a revelation for the club since that night. Last season, Moore really began to hit his stride, particularly offensively. He started 2020 red-hot after going 5-for-13 in the brief month of July. Moore continued to swing a hot bat in August, with a 127 OPS+, .360 OBP, and six steals for the month.

His production dipped slightly in September, but he still stole six bases and had an OPS+ of 116, suggesting a bit of hard luck for the month. All-in-all, 2020 was a very productive year for Moore at the plate, finishing with a 139 wRC+ and an overall WAR of 1.4 in just 38 games.

Defensively, Dylan Moore was alright in the middle infield last year. He finished with +1 defensive runs saved and a +2 plus/minus runs saved. There is a serious cause for optimism surrounding improved defense for Moore at second base in 2021.

The M’s world-renowned infield coach Perry Hill worked remotely last year and Moore also appeared at six other positions. A full off-season and spring training devoted to one position working with Perry Hill should pay dividends.

After all, we’ve already seen what Hill has does with Moore’s Gold-Glove teammates Evan White and J.P. Crawford, as well as the next option.

Seattle Mariners Option No. 2 – Shed Long Jr.

After a successful 42 game rookie campaign in 2019, Shed Long Jr. was given a clear path to everyday at-bats by Servais and Dipoto heading into spring training. Long struggled in the spring, but he later claimed his shin issue which plagued him since his time in Peoria in 2020. His struggles continued throughout the shortened regular season, hitting .171 and striking out nearly 30% of the time.

The stress fracture in his shin more than likely played a part in Long’s less-than-ideal 2020. After-all, the fracture occurred in his right shin, his front foot within his left-handed stroke. The abbreviated leg-kick is a major part of Long’s swing, allowing him to time-up pitchers and activate his hands from the left side.

An injury to that front leg likely caused a deal of pain and discomfort within every single swing he took last year. With a healthy shin, Long’s swing has the potential to get back to the explosive place that it was at in 2019.

Despite his struggles at the plate, Long showed considerable strides last year defensively, even with that stress fracture. His defensive runs saved jumped up 4 points from 2019, while he made eight more out of zone plays in only five more starts at the position last year.

One also must remember Shed Long Jr. is only 25-years-old and he was a highly-touted prospect. He has considerable potential for a bounce-back season in 2021, as he will be fully healthy and has an opportunity in spring to get hot and reclaim his starting role.

Now onto the final option.

Seattle Mariners Option No. 3 – A free agent addition

The offseason is not over, and that truly means a lot in the conversation of who will claim the second base role. Considering Jerry Dipoto’s habits, there is certainly still a chance that he brings in a free agent to fill the need.

More from Mariners News

• Mariners Trade Kyle Lewis to Arizona for Cooper Hummel
• Mariners 2022 Report Cards: Grading the season for Diego Castillo
• Mariners 2022 Report Cards: Grading the season for Adam Frazier
• Mariners acquire Teoscar Hernandez in deal with Blue Jays
• Mariners 2022 Report Cards: Grading the season for Abraham Toro

All of the targets that I had listed in my prior piece currently are unsigned, but one of them really sticks out to me. César Hernández is still available, and a move to acquire him would make sense for the Mariners in 2021.

He is not a guy who would command a multi-year deal, and he had a similar year offensively to Dylan Moore in 2020, actually hitting for a higher average and more extra-base hits. This addition would allow Moore to play much more outfield, where he was considerably better defensively and would give the M’s an infield complete with a Gold Glove Award winner at every position (excluding catcher and pitcher).

If a free agent is brought in, it could easily be another second baseman other than Hernández. Hernández could also sign elsewhere. Regardless, it is very possible the Mariners bring in an unemployed second baseman.

But if I were a betting man, my money would be on Dylan Moore starting the season at second base and building off of a surprising 2020 season, as he seems the most likely option to claim the role at this point.