3 Mariners players who need to be shown the door after 2025 MLB playoffs

The Seattle Mariners have had plenty of playoff heroes and villains, and this year is no different. While there are plenty of candidates for the team's best playoff hero of the 2025 postseason, there are also plenty of candidates for the biggest villain.

Let's take a look at three Mariners who played their way off the 2026 roster due to their awful postseason performances.

3 Mariners who should be shown the door after Mariners' 2025 playoff run

1. Luke Raley

Luke Raley is probably the Mariner who had the worst postseason. He went 0-for-4 in his only four at-bats and was hit by a pitch. While he was OK on the basepaths as a pinch-runner, he was simply not able to do a thing offensively. When the Mariners reached the ALCS, they didn't even include him on their roster for that round.

It was Raley's first postseason appearance since 2021 with the Dodgers, when he went 0-for-1 in his lone at-bat, striking out. After an injury-plagued season in which he was worth 0.3 bWAR, it's hard to argue he deserves a spot on the team next year.

2. Carlos Vargas

Credit to Vargas. He stuck around the whole year, giving the Mariners 70 appearances out of the pen and having a solid 3.97 ERA. That's acceptable for an innings-eater reliever in the regular season, but it was not good enough for him in the playoffs.

In 7.0 total innings against Detroit and Toronto, he allowed five earned runs, including the game-winning run for Detroit in Game 1 of the ALDS. He left a sour taste in the mouths of fans after blowing a 2-2 game in the 11th inning, and it will not be easy for fans to let go of that.

3. Matt Brash

This one will certainly be controversial, but Brash really struggled at the end of 2025. To finish the regular season, he had a 4.43 ERA after August 2. And in the postseason, he struggled more than his 2.00 ERA lets on. He allowed five walks and three hits in 9.0 innings, also mixing in a hit-by-pitch and two wild pitches against a Blue Jays offense that can't be given free bases.

Brash might bounce back next year and go back to being the dominant reliever he was before his injury in 2024. Or he might not. The Mariners should seriously consider looking into trading him and getting some value back for him, in case he is never able to get back to his 2023 levels.