Three Bold Mariners Predictions for the Month of April

Prediction #1: Julio Rodriguez decides “The ROY is Mine!”

I think this is the player prediction that everyone most wants to happen. For Julio to come out, firing on all cylinders, and seize the Rookie of the Year award with a strong April.

It’s a big ask. He’s 21 all season, and would be one of the youngest players to win the award. Especially when you realize how much baseball was missed from pandemic-related cancellations.

Then, add in that he barely has any time at even AA baseball, and you realize that it’s going to make it even more impressive when Julio comes out and hits well. He has hit well everywhere that he has been, knocking down any obstacle placed in front of him. Double A, the Olympics, or spring training, he’s hit well at all of them.

There are going to be some slow sections of the month. A 1-7 here and a 2-11 there, but that’s only a small part of the picture. He’s going to make us forget about those easily with some magnificent series where he hits .500, going 6-12 or 7-14.

Julio is gonna come out and hit .280/.350/.480 this month, rapping 5 HR and stealing a handful of bases as well. Pairing that with what turns out to be slightly above average defense in Center, and we are going to see Julios play take a look at Detroit and Kansas City while saying “This award is mine.” Not only that… he’s gonna hit a homerun during the first game of the series in Minnesota.

Prediction #2: We see 2018/2019 Eugenio Suarez for the Mariners

There are a lot of fans out there that I constantly see complaining about Suarez. Whether it’s he is past his prime, it was PEDs, it was the ball, he’s a poor man’s Kyle Seager, or that he just isn’t good.

For all of those naysayers, it’s important to remember that Suarez has hit a lot of home runs. Like, A LOT of them. If I remember correctly, he has the most home runs in baseball over the last four seasons with 129.

Coming off of a shoulder injury, Suarez should be healthy for the first time in a while. The Mariners also aren’t going to be playing him at short, which should take a little of the stress off of him. He’s also going to be in a lineup that, while it was quite weak (okay, awful) in 2021, actually has the potential to be a top 10 lineup in all of baseball.

Suarez is going to have a great season with the Mariners, and it’s all going to start in April. He’s actually gonna be the top hitter on the team, hitting .365 for the month with 9 HR. His play, alongside Julio, will help the Mariners to a strong start and a record of 13-8.

Prediction #3: Chris Flexen has a bad month for the Mariners

This goes back to the bold predictions I made for the season, and I think it starts early. In one of his first two starts, Flexen is gonna get rocked. Like, 3 IP & 7 Runs badly rocked. Are they all earned? Maybe, maybe not. But it’s the start of a bad April for Flexen, and things never get any better after that. He pitches decent sometimes, but as April draws to a close, he ends up sitting around an 8.50 ERA.

Remember 2021, how Flexen really struggled on the road? It seemed like a lot of his starts were away from Seattle for quite a while, and it was skewing his stats. His splits ended up being pretty crazy halfway through the year due to the absolute drubbing he took from the Padres.

Well, I think the start in Minnesota could be the start of another rough road for Flexen. The Mariners outfield defense isn’t that good. With Kelenic needing to show improvement, Julio unproven at the MLB level as well as center field, and Haniger and Winker below average (Winker is worse), it seems like a recipe for disaster for a pitcher that sees a lot of his pitches end up in play.

Only time will tell if any of these things are actually going to happen. It sure would be awesome to see Julio and Geno rake all month, and I would love to be wrong about Flexen. Baseball is here though, and for now, that’s good enough for me. Go Mariners!