Mariners fans fume as AL West rival locks up another core star

Another day, another reminder that the Seattle Mariners refuse to take the next step in building a true contender. This time, it comes courtesy of the Athletics extending Lawrence Butler, locking up another promising young player while the Mariners sit on their hands.

It’s a seven-year, $65.5 million deal with multiple club options, securing a guy who has the tools to be a problem in the AL West for years to come. If that wasn’t enough, the A's already extended Brent Rooker earlier this offseason. That means Seattle now has to deal with both of them 13 times a year, every year, while their own front office refuses to commit to its own foundational young talent.

Lawrence Butler's extension should enrage Mariner fans

Somehow, a notoriously cheap team set to play in front of 14,000 fans in a Triple-A ballpark has spent more money than the Mariners this offseason.

The Mariners keep talking about how they want to build a sustainable winner, yet they haven't extended core young players outside of Julio Rodríguez. Guys like Cal Raleigh, George Kirby, Logan Gilbert, or anyone else who might actually help this team take the next step are prime extension candidates. Yet from what we have heard, the talks haven't gotten very far. At some point, “sustainability” just becomes an excuse for not spending.

What’s even more frustrating is that these aren’t "break the bank" deals the A’s are handing out.

Rooker’s extension was only five years for $60 million, and Butler’s is an incredibly team-friendly contract that keeps him in green and gold for his prime years. The A’s, a franchise actively being sabotaged by its owner, suddenly understand that if you identify talent early, you lock it up. Meanwhile, the Mariners are content nickel-and-diming the extra pieces of the roster while giving the young core virtually no support.

This team should be a World Series contender. They have the pitching. They have the pieces. They just need ownership to act like they care. Yet every offseason, it’s the same story. “Payroll flexibility.” “Sustainable success.” “Opportunities to improve.” The Mariners operate like a mid-market team despite massive revenues, content to do things like sign Donovan Solano and Jorge Polanco rather than aim higher.

So congrats to the A’s for actually taking care of their players. Maybe one day, the Mariners will wake up and do the same.