The Seattle Mariners Are THE Team To Beat In The American League

Coming off their first postseason appearance since 2001, the Mariners were primed to seek out similar success in 2023. However, things did not start off as planned, as the Mariners were inconsistent throughout much of the first half of the year. However, since the trade deadline, they have put it together, and now stand at 79-63, 1.5 GB of the AL West. In this blog, I will talk about why the Mariners are primed to make a deep postseason run, and why they are the team to beat in the AL.

Starting Pitching:

The Mariners have one of baseball’s deepest rotations. They are led by Luis Castillo, who has a 1.04 WHIP and 3.08 ERA. If not for Gerrit Cole, Castillo would be in the conversations for the AL Cy Young. He is also walking guys at the lowest clip of his career, with a 2.26 BB/9.

Behind Castillo, the Mariners have 26 year-old RHP Logan Gilbert. Gilbert has been solid once again, posting a 1.07 WHIP and 3.61 ERA. Like Castillo, Gilbert has pounded the strike zone this year, allowing only 1.62 BB/9, and has a 3.4 fWAR this season.

And behind these 2, is 25 year old RHP George Kirby. Kirby has been stellar this season, sporting a 1.05 WHIP and 3.48 ERA. Kirby has the lowest BB/9 in the entire league at 0.87, and a 4.0 fWAR, which is 8th best in the MLB.

With 3 phenomenal starting pitchers, the Mariners will be able to be competitive in any game this postseason. When they go against star powered lineups like the Astros and Orioles, they will need their pitching to limit those lineups, and they have the starting pitching to do so.

Bullpen:

Despite trading closer Paul Sewald at the trade deadline, the Mariners still have one of the best bullpens in all of baseball. As a bullpen, the Mariners have a 1.28 WHIP and a 3.54 ERA, 10th and 4th, respectively. They have 5 bullpen arms with a WHIP above league average (1.31), and this does not include Andres Muñoz, who has 10 saves since the Sewald trade. With elite pitching all around, the Mariners should be able to contain their opponents run production.

Hitting:

While the offense has been inconsistent for the Mariners this season, they have finally started to put it together. Since August 1st, the Mariners have a team OPS of .844, 5th best in the MLB. They are 3rd in home runs during that time frame, and 5th in XBH.

They are led by Julio Rodriguez, who in that time span has taken off. Julio is batting .369 with an OPS above 1.100 since August 1st, and he has also hit 11 home runs. Julio, like the Mariners, had been inconsistent up until August, but he has turned it on and has been key to the Mariners lineup getting hot.

As we saw with last year’s Phillies team, sometimes all it takes is 1 or 2 guys getting hot and carrying you through the postseason, and the Mariners could have that in the form of Julio and somebody else stepping up.