Mariners' injury plans for Dominic Canzone, Luke Raley are from a failed playbook

With Seattle's offense sputtering, it may be surprising to hear that the team's best player by wRC+ hasn't played much recently. Dominic Canzone, who has an impressive 153 wRC+ for this season, has made just 38 plate appearances since June 16th, slightly less than full-time starters like Cal Raleigh and J.P. Crawford. Luke Raley has played even less, making just 17 plate appearances over the same span.

A particularly cynical fan might assume this lineup construction has something to do with Dan Wilson's ineptitude as a manager. Seattle's skipper has been far from perfect, but the reason Raley and Canzone have been left out of the lineup more often as of late is due to injuries. Raley is working through a left forearm strain while Canzone is dealing with a tweaked hamstring. Despite neither player operating at full capacity, it seems the team is still intending on penciling them in occasionally, a move that might be a major strategic blunder.

The Mariners have already seen the failed results of trying to push players through injury

This has been a challenging season for multiple reasons, and one of them has been the steady string of position player injuries the club has had to navigate. Initially, it seemed like the general idea was to allow players to try and play through the pain, hoping to salvage some sort of contribution without necessitating a move to the injured list.

Unfortunately, that has failed to spawn any sort of success despite multiple trials.

Cal Raleigh had become known for his durability and thus tried to play through an oblique injury he sustained at the beginning of the season, but the results weren't pretty. Even after returning, his wRC+ of 70 is a far cry from the 161 mark he reached last year. Similarly, Brendan Donovan's hot start was threatened by a groin injury that he tried to sweep under the rug, and now he has been on the shelf for more than a month and won't be back until after the All-Star Break.

J.P. Crawford, Randy Arozarena, and Rob Refsnyder are other examples of position players that had the same experience. For Refsnyder in particular, it was out there for weeks that he was having knee trouble before he finally went on the IL on Monday. It could at least partially explain his 24 wRC+ for the season.

When it comes to Raley and Canzone, both of whom are producing strong results at the plate, it can be tempting to grasp for whatever they can give the lineup, but it's a short-sighted move. Raley in particular has been nearly unplayable, posting a wRC+ of just 15 over 61 plate appearances in June.

The Mariners are just barely past the halfway point and are already holding the roster together with duct tape. Their understudies may not be quite as compelling options to take the field, but relying on them in the short term may prevent Seattle from having to miss out on their true starters for extended periods of time. Delayed gratification is usually pretty nifty but in this case, it may be necessary for the organization to keep their playoff hopes alive.

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