What if the Mariners didn’t Add a Bat at the Trade Deadline?

The trade deadline is almost here. It’s literally a day away as I write this. We already saw the Mariners make the biggest splash up to this point in their acquisition of Luis Castillo. Although many Mariners fans wanted the team to go after hitting instead, Dipoto and crew said that starting pitching was what they were focused on, and they easily delivered.

Yet… the offense is still a problem, and I don’t think you can really argue too much with how the team is currently looking.

Notice I said currently. As in, with all those injuries and people sitting out.

What would the Mariners offense look like if they didn’t make any additions at the deadline?

Think about all the potential firepower the Mariners are currently missing from their lineup. Kyle Lewis is back and getting into the swing of things. Julio Rodriguez is hurt. Dylan Moore is hurt (he hit .261/.404/435 in July). Mitch Haniger is out. Tom Murphy is out. Taylor Trammell is out. That’s a lot of people that would help the lineup out.

Now, Murphy is out for the year, so the question of who is going to be the backup catcher still remains, because we all know that Torrens has not looked up to it at all this year. Shoot, he has given up more homers than he has hit!

Once Haniger, France, and Julio are healthy though, the lineup actually looks pretty good. Put them in whatever order you prefer, but I think it could look something like this.

1. JP Crawford – SS
2. Ty France – 1B
3. Julio Rodriguez – CF
4. Mitch Haniger – RF
5. Eugenio Suarez – 3B
6. Kyle Lewis – DH
7. Cal Raleigh – C
8. Jesse Winker – LF
9. Adam Frazier – 2B

Is it great? No, it’s not. But you know what? It still looks decent, and arguably good enough to make a run. With Taylor Trammell and Dylan Moore on the bench to give much-needed off days, that’s a lineup that, while healthy, would actually be decent.

Really, the success of the Mariners this year is going to come down to the players that they got from the Reds. If they can play to their expectations, this team is going to cause trouble.

That being said… if Dipoto and Crew could go out and get another bat, that would be great. Go Mariners!