Randy Arozarena's IL stint turns Mariners' bad roster management into a self-parody

It's been exasperating to witness the sheer volume of injuries the Mariners have suffered during the first half of the 2026 season. However, we're at a point now where you have to ask if this is down to more than just bad luck. Especially when you consider the circumstances surrounding Randy Arozarena being the latest addition to the Injured List.

About 45 minutes before first pitch of Tuesday's home series opener versus the Orioles, Arozarena was still listed as day-to-day with left hamstring soreness. Then came the bombshell, as reported by Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, that the two-time All-Star was headed to the 10-day IL. He had undergone a precautionary MRI on Tuesday morning, with the results revealing more inflammation that was initially expected.

General manager Justin Hollander advised the Mariners don't expect Arozarena staying on the IL longer than the minimum, which is retroactive to June 13th. However, it's tough to just accept this in good faith given what's transpired. For a start, the left fielder was injured on Friday, so why did they wait until Tuesday for him to undergo an MRI?

On its own, you could put this down to just being one of those things, but even that's kind. The problem is this isn't a one-off case. The Arozarena situation is part of a pattern of the Mariners being late to react to injuries.

An ever-growing horror list of key Mariners players suffering injuries

For example, J.P. Crawford didn't hit the IL until a couple days after Framber Valdez plunked him with a pitch. This wasn't even the first case this year of the Mariners initially saying Crawford wasn't seriously injured before having to send him to the IL, after suffering right shoulder inflammation during spring training and subsequently missing the start of the season.

There were also some shenanigans with Brendan Donovan, who was originally "day-to-day" before he went on the IL the first time with his left groin muscle strain. And he didn't last long when he came back, appearing in just seven games before having to go to the IL again with uncertainty over when he will return.

Arguably the worst case of a self-own came with Cal Raleigh, who didn't go on the IL right away after straining his right oblique in April. As admirable as it was that he attempted to play through his injury, he sabotaged himself and the team with subpar hitting that including a 0-for-38 streak. Going to the IL sooner than mid-May would have been better all around.

Seriously though, it's been like a 'who's who' list of key personnel on the Mariners Injured List at different points in 2026, also including Matt Brash, Gabe Speier, Bryce Miller and Carlos Vargas. Heck, we're nervous that Josh Naylor currently being day-to-day is going to turn into something more serious.

Clearly, the M's need to get a lot better at closing ranks when an injury happens, and stop spending a few days hoping for the best.

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