Former Mariners slugger calls it a career after 11 years in the majors

Mike Zunino was drafted in 2012 with the 3rd pick by the Seattle Mariners out of the University of Florida. Zunino wouldn't spend much time in the minors as he would be called up to make his debut on June 11, 2013. Mike Zunino would play parts of six seasons with the Mariners, finding a mix of success, disappointment, and frusturation in his time with the team.

He moved on after the 2018 season which saw him struggle quite a bit. He was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays for Mallex Smith and Jake Fraley, who are no longer with the Mariners organization. He found some success there in his third season when he made his one and only All-Star appearance, backed by a career-high 33 home runs.

Mike Zunino has retired from the game of baseball.

Many believed Mike Zunino was rushed to the Majors by the front office at that time, which hindered his development at the plate. While with the Seattle Mariners, Zunino had a slash line of .207/.271/.406 with 95 HR, 241 RBI, and an OPS+ of 89. Good enough for a 7.1 WAR with the Mariners. Mike was known for hitting mammoth home runs and playing exceptional defense behind the plate.

It wasn't all great, as four of his last five seasons saw a batting average of .180 or lower. The high's were great and a lot of fun, but the lows were painful to watch sometimes. The defense kept him behind the plate, as he posted positive dWAR numbers each of his first 9 seasons.

This video shows just how much power Mike Zunino had, he hit that ball something like 4 rows from the top of the bleachers out in left field. That is some crazy power. Mike Zunino might not have lived up to his potential with the Mariners but as mentioned earlier, he was an All-Star with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2021 and smashed 33 home runs that year. Congratulations on an amazing career Mike Zunino.