Welcome these new faces to the Mariners in 2024
It's not just that the Mariners made a couple of moves this offseason. Instead, it was like the Front Office was handed a Bingo card and told that they had to hit a Bingo or else they were going to be fired, leading to an incredible 12 trades by the team.. For the first time since taking over, Dipoto and crew signed a hitter to a multi-year deal when they inked Mitch Garver to a 2/3 year deal. They also brought in a handful of flyers off of waiver claims, some of which have a shot at making the team.
Cody Bolton - RP
Blake Hunt - C
Luis Urías - 3B
Seby Zavala - C
Carlos Vargas - RP
Jackson Kowar - RP
Cole Phillips - RP
Mitch Haniger - OF
Luke Raley - OF
Jorge Polanco - 2B
Samad Taylor - UTIL
Gregory Santos - RP
Mitch Garver - DH
Levi Stoudt - SP
Austin Voth - RP
Mauricio Llovera - RP
Michael Chavis - UTIL
Look at how many new faces (or even returning faces) the Mariners have for this season. DH, 2B, 3B, LF, RF are all going to be new players. Over half of the lineup wasn't here when Game 162 finished, and it's an incredibly impressive offseason by Dipoto and Hollander to re-shape this team given the ridiculous financial constraints imposed upon them by the joke that is John Stanton.
This team is better (on paper) than they were to finish out 2023. They're deeper, the bullpen might be a bit thinner, but if healthy they are going to be more dangerous in the 1-2-3 than they were last year with Brash, Munoz, and Santos evoking thoughts of the 15/16 Royals. Voth is a fun addition as a long reliever/middle reliever, they got Stoudt back on waivers, and Samad Taylor is an intriguing piece with wild speed if he can get on base enough to use it.
The ceiling is definitely higher with the 2024 Mariners, but it comes with a higher risk as well. It's going to be fun to see how all these new faces fare throughout Spring Training and into the season, and it should make for an exciting 2024 season.