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4 Mariners hitters who are not helping themselves this Spring Training
With the season less than a week away, the time is now to be playing your best baseball. We have gone over the guys who have had a great Spring, so here are 4 Mariners hitters who have not looked good at the plate so far this Spring.
While the offseason didn't go the way most Mariners fans (Including me) wanted, Jerry Dipoto and company were able to churn the roster over and came up with a better team than they had in 2023. I would like to think that they learned their lesson when it came to relying on 35+ year old's in free agency, and they did not seem to make that mistake again. No AJ Pollock's, no Tommy La Stella's or Kolten Wong's, at least we hope not.
When roster turnover happens, you lose guys you like, and gain guys you may not know. Sometimes you gain more than you lose, and vise versa. When you have a team like the Mariners, who seem to just be a few key pieces away from real World Series contention, the new guys better come in and make an impact early.
It is not just the new guys though. The players who stuck around from last year either have to replicate what they did, or get better than they were. Players who had down years have to put in the work to get better, and players who had good years have to put in the work to stay on top. That all starts at Spring Training.
Keep in mind that stats do not really matter all that much in Spring Training. Nobody remembers the guy who hit .600 in Spring but went on to hit .212 and got demoted by June 1. What I look for is hard contact, strikeout numbers, walks, and overall health. Every team in Spring has their own agenda, and you could have days where Julio and the boys are squaring off against a pitcher throwing nothing but changeups, or a pitcher who has not even sniffed double-a yet.
With that all being said, some of the hitters that are expected to help this team are of to terrible starts. Some of them are fringe guys who probably wouldn't have made the roster anyway, but some of them were hoping to play a major role on the 2024 Mariners. Here are the four Mariners hitters who are not helping themselves this Spring.
Luke Raley
Luke Raley was brought over from the Tampa Bay Rays in a trade earlier this offseason. The Mariners ended up sending Jose Caballero to the Rays for Raley. Cabby played a huge role for the Mariners in 2023 but figured to lose some playing time with the team wanting to upgrade second base. Raley is a first base/corner outfielder, and maybe one of the most underrated players in the American League.
Raley seemed poised to be apart of a platoon in left field this year, The Mariners already had a ton of left-handed corner outfielders, but Raley could be better than them all. In 2023, Raley hit .249/.333/.490/.824 with an OPS+ of 126 in 118 games. He also hit 19 home runs and stole 14 bases. Raley has 20/20 potential, something the Mariners would be salivating over.
I’m excited to watch Luke Raley take that next step in 2024, ideally hitting between big power bats in Mitch Garver and Cal Raleigh.
— The Couch GM (@The_Couch_GM) March 5, 2024
Luke was 1 of 10 guys in MLB last year with a barrel rate and sprint speed in the 80th percentile of higher. #mariners #tridentsup #mlb… pic.twitter.com/yx1zWuuHKc
He comes with some strikeout issues, as he struck out in 32.2% of his career at-bats. While that seems like the norm for Mariners fans, the front office made a serious point to try and cut down on strikeouts this offseason. This Spring, it is much of the same, as Luke has been striking out a clip much higher than the team wants to see.
It is not just the strikeouts though, he is just plain struggling this Spring. His numbers jumped after their final game against the Cubs, as Raley had a double and a triple, driving in 3. It still only brought his numbers up to .175/.267/.250. While we all think he will be better than that in the regular season, other lefty-hitting outfielders are having a good Spring. Dominic Canzone, Taylor Trammell, and Cade Marlowe are all having a better statistical Spring than Raley.
I am sure that Luke Raley will turn it around. But he has not won any new fans with the poor performance, at least not yet. While nobody expects him to be the next Julio or anything, if the Mariners are contenders at all, Luke Raley will need to be a key contributor this season and beyond.
Josh Rojas
Josh Rojas, along with Dominic Canzone and Ryan Bliss, came over at the trade deadline last year from the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Paul Sewald trade. He impressed in his short time in Seattle last year enough to be able to compete for the starting third base spot vacated by Eugenio Suarez, who coincidentally is the new starting third baseman for those same Diamondbacks.
Rojas hit .272 for the Mariners last season, something he couldn't do down in Arizona last year. Rojas figures to be in a platoon at third base with fellow newcomer Luis Urias. All Rojas needed was a strong performance in Spring, but it just has not been there yet.
Josh Rojas hits the Mariners FOURTH home run of the game pic.twitter.com/U2Cg1my3jt
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) August 16, 2023
Josh is hitting just .188/.308/.344. I know that is a super small sample size. But the bat has just not shown up yet. Urias has missed time with a shoulder injury so far, but he has been ramping up as of late. Rojas may be struggling now, but he will need to get off to a good start to stick in the lineup.
Rojas does still get on base, even in his poor Spring. His .308 on-base percentage seems pretty good considering he is only hitting .188. He has walked 6 times and has stolen 2 bases. He stole 12 bases between Seattle and Arizona last season. His career high is 23, so hopefully he can get a bit closer to that number by the end of 2024.
Bench bats: Seby Zavala and Sam Haggerty
Okay, I get it. Zavala and Haggerty shouldn't be playing major roles for this team. Haggerty, in all likelihood, will not make the team out of Spring Training. Zavala on the other hand, is slated to be the team's backup catcher. That is a very important role, because of the impact Cal Raleigh brings to the table in both leadership and his bat. Should Cal miss time, the backup would be thrust into action.
Seby Zavala came over from the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Eugenio Suarez trade. He is a career .210 hitter, with a career OPS+ of 72 (28% lower than a league-average player). Those stats are not good. Zavala will not make the team because of his bat, but he will because of his glove, lucky for him.
Zavala's Spring has not gone well, as he is hitting just .167/.270/.333 with an OPS of .603. 3 of his 5 hits this Spring have gone for extra bases, including 1 home run. He has walked 5 times as well. If the Mariners were to have another veteran competing with Zavala, he would be on the hot seat for sure. But with nobody really to compete with, expect Zavala to be on the team for a while, at least.
SLAM HAGGERTY. pic.twitter.com/Avzon5NjKK
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) August 20, 2023
Sam Haggerty, on the other hand, likely will not make the team, maybe at all in 2024. Haggerty is competing with Dylan Moore and others for the team's utility role. Moore has swung a very hot bat this Spring, and prospects like Ryan Bliss and Cole Young are knocking at the door. Haggerty needed to have a good Spring to even be considered, and he has not done that as of now.
He is hitting just .136/.208/.318/.526 in his 22 Spring at bats. He has just 3 hits so far, 2 of them being extra-base hits. Yes, he can play virtually every [position, but guys like Dylan Moore can too, and they have just swung a better stick so far. I just do not see Haggerty making this team unless an injury or two pop up. Hopefully, he sticks in Tacoma, as the Mariners could need him at some point later this season.
As always, Go Mariners!