Who would’ve thought that Seattle would be in first place halfway through April? Certainly not me at least. The Seattle Mariners have somehow managed a 9-5 record and have the second best winning percentage in the entire American League. Across the entire MLB, the Mariners are tied in third place with the San Diego Padres. What makes it even more baffling is that the M’s have been without a few key players, including Kyle Lewis.
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The 2020 AL Rookie of the Year began the season on the injured list after injuring his right knee during spring training. At first, the team thought it wasn’t too big of a deal but after further examination, we learned that it was a deep bone bruise. Lewis had surgery on the same knee to repair a torn ACL and medial and lateral meniscus so I don’t blame the team for being cautious.
Kyle Lewis is nearing his return to the Mariners
According to Jen Mueller, Lewis will ramp up his work in the next couple of days to test whether he’s ready to get back out there. Seattle plays the Dodgers on Monday and Tuesday after finishing the series against the Astros. So, we might see Lewis back in action against one of the best teams in the MLB.
Getting Lewis back is particulary exciting for M’s fans because our offense has been pretty cold. Our hitting has been mediocre and our team batting average and on base percentage sits in the middle of the rankings. Additionally, the offensive production has been lopsided. The top of the lineup has been producing high wOBA’s while the remaining hitters have been very disappointing.
Adding Kyle Lewis to the mix would help Scott Servais because he could push guys like Evan White, Jose Marmolejos and Taylor Trammell down in the lineup. I also assume that Kyle will mix into the designated hitter rotation just to keep him off his feet when possible.
I am excited to see how the 2020 AL Rookie of the Year jumps into the 2021 season because the team is red hot right now.