When the Mariners Trade Your Favorite Player(s)...

Do you remember when the Seahawks let Bobby Wagner walk, and he ended up signing with the Rams? it was a loss for many fans. I made sure to watch the Seahawks games against the Rams so I could watch him. I loved the ovation he received at Lumen Field when the Rams played in Seattle. I was so happy when he returned to the Seahawks. Bobby Wagner is a top defender, a leader, and also a man who contributes to the community. Fans like him for different reasons, but I like him for all of these traits.

Some players become fan favorites because of their skills or due to aspects of their personalities that we can pick up at games and on TV. Whether it be Suarez's little soccer move with the baseball or his fun HR trip around the bases, his personality increased our respect and fondness for him. We enjoyed seeing Paul Sewald celebrate after saving the game. Marco Gonzales was a leader and contributor to the Seattle community.

This Season and Offseason

I feel like I have lost several of my favorite players since August 1. First, Paul Sewald went to the Diamondbacks. Then, Eugenio Suarez went to Arizona. Seattle traded Marco Gonzales, Evan White, and Jarred Kelenic to the Braves, but Gonzales ended up with the Pirates, and Evan White was traded again to the Angels. Free agent Tom Murphy signed with the Giants. Friday, the Mariners surprised me by trading Robbie Ray, and Jose Caballero. Yesterday, we learned that Teoscar Hernandez had signed with the Dodgers.

In the Fall, I criticized the goal of winning 54 percent of the Mariners' games and said that this is not a winning strategy. I questioned whether the team wanted to spend enough to create a team just good enough to fill T-Mobile Park, but not good enough to compete in the playoffs most years. I assumed that we would keep the majority of our players and simply add to the group to replace free-agent departure. I had no idea that management would let go of so many key players.

I will move beyond these losses, of course, and will become interested in and excited about the new players. My regret that former players are leaving has nothing to do with the new players. I thought that Rojas and Canzone made important contributions to the team.

The Future

Some fans just want guys on the field in Mariners' uniforms who can win during the season and postseason. No doubt there are a few fans who wonder if trading this many veterans may change the overall character of the team: the same team that ended the drought in 2022 and was one game away from the playoffs in 2023.

Except for Marco Gonzales and Teoscar Hernandez, Mariner fans will have a chance to see their former favorites at T-Mobile Park. The Mariners go to the Pirates and Dodgers in 2024. Ironically, five of our former players are now in the NL West and will be playing against one another regularly.

* Seattle will play the Diamondbacks and Giants in Spring Training. They play Arizona on 3/17 and 3/22 as a split-squad game. The Giants play the Mariners on 2/27 and 3/10.

The Mariners have been focusing on the return of Mitch Haniger who we were sad to see go last year. Maybe some of the players we recently lost will return like he did, but time will tell.