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3 keys to the Mariners winning the division

The Mariners are fighting for a playoff spot, but as they start to separate themselves from the Blue Jays, what do they need to do to fight their way into a division title. They will have plenty of chances these last few weeks, so let's look at what needs to happen.

By Tanner Vogt |
Kansas City Royals v Seattle Mariners
Kansas City Royals v Seattle Mariners / Alika Jenner/GettyImages
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As the Mariners take on the Dodgers in what will be a dog fight of a series, we look ahead to what needs to change in order for the Mariners to claw their way back into contention for the divison. After wrapping up this 3 game series, they will face the Athletics for 3, Texas for 3, Houston for 3 and end the season witih 4 against the Texas Rangers. There are plenty of chances for the Mariners to give the Astros and Rangers a run for their money for the division title, something the Mariners haven't been able to claim in over 20 years.

The pitching needs to return to form

The backbone of this Mariners team is the pitching staff, there has never been any doubts about where the strength of this teams lies. The pitching staff was a big factor in taking this team from very mid to one of the elite teams in the AL. When you look at the numbers from July and and August the pitching staff was as dominant as it gets. A 3.35 ERA in July with a 2.41 BB/9 led the Mariners to a 17-9 record as opponents slugged just .389 against Mariner's pitching. They continued their dominance into August with a 3.03 ERA and a miniscule 1.83 BB/9 to a club record 21 wins, with opponents slugging .375. As the pitching goes, so go the Mariners. A 4.47 ERA, nearly double August walk rate at 3.28 BB/9 and opponents slugging .469 has led to the Mariners' to a 5-8 record.

It has been obvious that Mariners pitching has struggled this month with some, like George Kirby, voicing frustration about their performance. This is where the biggest improvement needs to happen if the Mariners are going to make a run for the divison title or a playoff run, for that matter. Castillo, Kirby and to a lesser degree Logan Gilbert need to get back on track and lead this team and give them a chance to win every start from here on out. Woo and Miller need to be solid; they don't need to be elite, but they need to be able to get through at least 5 innings before turning things over to the bullpen and give the Mariners a chance to win a few games.

Better production from your corner infielders

In traditional baseball thinking, your corner infielders are more offensive minded players that generally provide a lot for your lineup. This is true for the Mariners as Ty France and Eugenio Suarez were expected to be 2 key cogs in the middle of this Mariners lineup. Ty France has had a very disappointing year but looked to turn things around in August as the Mariners surged forward.

He had a .272/.412/.435 slash line with 3 home runs and a 17% strikeout rate and a 14% walk rate. He played a big part in the Mariners offense taking off in August, giving them some real depth that they have lacked in recent years. Things looked to be turning around for him, but he has stumbled in September with a .200/.319/.225 slash, he has yet to hit a home run this month, is still walking 10% of the time, but has nearly doubled his strikeout rate with 30% this month. Ty France posesses all of the ability to be a big contributor for the middle of the lineup, and I don't know if he has been hurt, or just struggling, but he has had nearly all of whatever power he did posess, zapped! Maybe it's time to start getting out of the way of those pitches, keep yourself healthy and start tearing the cover off of the baseball.

Eugenio Suarez was a big part of the Mariners success last year as a big surprised as a "throw-in" in the Jesse Winker trade. He is a big stick, that we all know comes with a lot of strikeouts, it's just something that we have come to accept. Geno's power isn't what it was last year, but that was sort of expected.

He is a streaky hitter, but man, he was really good in August with a .271/.371/.430 slash with 4 home runs, a 40% strikeout rate, but an impressive 14% walk rate. Geno made pitchers come to him and punished mistakes that were made. In September, he has been straight up awful. He has slashed .196/.240/.370 with 2 home runs. His strikeout rate remains consistent at 41%, but he is only walking 4% of the time. Geno is a leader of this club house, and he will need to turn things around in a big way to help Julio, J.P. and Teoscar carry this lineup to the playoffs.

Kansas City Royals vs Houston Astros

I could have gone with an obvious one here like the bullpen, or September Kelenic carrying this offense to the playoffs, but sometimes you just need a little help. The Mariners are familiar with the Royals as the Mariners struggled to 4 game series win back in mid-August. It was a very back and forth series of games that the Mariners were very fortunate to come out of with a series win. They are led by one of the best in baseball in Bobby Witt Jr, and veteran catcher Salvador Perez. They have a few good pitchers in Jordan Lyles, Brady Singer and recent call up Cole Ragans, who has been very good since returning to Kansas City.

The Kansas City Royals are a pesky team that possesses a lot of talent and though they have the worst record in baseball, they are not an easy win by any means. So why are the Royals a key to the Mariners winning the AL West? Because of the 15 remaining games for the Astros, 6 will come against the Royals. One can hope that the Astros overlook the Royals as their first series is followed up with 3 against the Orioles and the 2nd series is followed by a road trip to Seattle. Now I dont expect the Royals to go 5-1 against the Astros or even 4-2. But if they can avoid being swept in either series or if they really wanted to help the Mariners and go 3-3 against the Astros, that would help the Mariners out a great deal.

This might be asking a lot, but this Royals team is very capable of taking 2 or 3 games and helping the Mariners out. If the Mariners can get their pitching to return to July and August form, while getting at least solidi production out of their corner spots and maybe get a little help from the Royals, they very well could play their way into hanging up a division title banner for the first time in over 20 years. As always, Go M's! Also, Go Royals!

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