Seattle Mariners: Can They Compete With the Best?

The Seattle Mariners shocked everyone last season by legitimately competing into September, before the bullpen collapsed due to exhaustion. Still, they finished only six games behind the Angels in the West and the Yankees in the Wild Card. Now, consider their changes: losing Adam Jones and gaining Carlos Silva and Erik Bedard.

Silva is a quality innings-eater and Bedard was a Cy Young Award candidate last year. The former Oriole led the AL in strikeouts per nine innings (10.93) and opponents' batting average (.212) last year while going 13-5 with a 3.16 ERA.

"King" Felix Hernandez (14-7, 3.92), the 21-year old Mariner phenom, will start second behind Bedard. He threw a one-hitter against the eventual World Series Champion Boston Red Sox while starting the season 2-0 before hurting his arm against the Kansas City Royals.
Hernandez stumbled a bit mid-season while recovering from the injury, but finished the year on an 8-1 spree. The "King" has every reason to thrive now, with the pressure of being the team's ace removed from his youthful shoulders.

The rest of the pitching is extremely strong, with Silva (13-14, 4.19 ERA, 202 IP) starting third in the rotation, followed by Jarrod Washburn (10-15, 4.32, 193.2) and Miguel Batista (16-11, 4.29, 193). Yes, everyone in their current rotation had double digit wins and ERAs below 4.40 last season.

The bullpen that kept them in the playoff race for so long hasn't changed much, with All-Star closer J.J. Putz (40 saves in '07), Sean White, Brandon Marrow, and Ryan Rowland-Smith, among others. With such dramatically improved starting pitching, it seems unlikely the bullpen will collapse like it did last season.

The Mariners also had one of the most underrated lineups last year and should shine behind the improved pitching. Their power was modest (153 HRs, 10th in the AL), but their team batting average of .287 was tied for second in the league, behind only the Yankees’ .290.

The averages should still be high, with Brad Wilkerson replacing Jose Guillen, while Richie Sexson, playing on the last year of his contract, should only improve from last year (.205 AVG and 63 RBI). Terror spread across the world when Ichiro didn't get a hit in spring training until his 22nd at bat, but he has only swung and missed at two pitches all spring (as of March 14th).

The team’s defense, always something of a strong point, looks like it may be a bit weaker in 2008. The infield is as promising as usual, with Adrian Beltre still offering gold glove-caliber work at third base and there are whispers of Yuniesky Betancourt being the next Ozzie Smith.

That may be a bit rash, but he does look good at shortstop. Jose Lopez will guard second base and his glove is improving every year. Richie Sexson may be getting old and creaky, but he is still eleven feet tall and gets the job done at first. Kenji Johjima was amazing last year and Jamie Burke is an exceptional back-up catcher. The outfield will still be led by Ichiro in center while Raul Ibanez and Wilkerson attempt to patrol the corners.

Both are lacking in speed, which the cavernous Safeco Field demands. But with Jose Vidro as a designated hitter/utility man, there should be plenty of time for the starters to rest. Mike Morse (who is having an amazing spring) can hold first base if Sexson struggles again and the new Wladimir Balentien stands ready to help in the outfield when needed.

The lineup does not look very different, although it will be thoroughly shuffled until Manager John McLaren finds something he likes. Ichiro will lead off, but things get hazy after that. It seems Beltre will bat 2nd, although Lopez or Vidro could do it. Then Vidro (or Beltre) will hit 3rd, allowing Ibanez to bat clean-up and Sexson to hit in the 5 spot. Johjima, Wilkerson, Lopez, and Betancourt will likely follow in that order or something like it. Morse, Balentien, and Burke will be ready off the bench or to fill-in for an injured player when needed. Those three provide a reassuring bench squad.

As good as the Mariners may look this year, there are already five dominant teams in the American League for them to compete with. The Red Sox and Yankees will battle for the East while the Indians and frighteningly improved Tigers wrestle in the Central. And the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are poised to dominant the West, just as they have so often lately.

The addition of Torii Hunter will give Vladimir Guerrero and Garret Anderson time to rest, allowing them to stay strong offensively throughout the season. Their offense last year was impressive; they scored 822 runs (4th in the AL) and Hunter can only help improve that number.

The Angels also posted a team ERA of 4.23 (5th in the AL) and picked up Jon Garland, who has two 18-win seasons to his credit, although he struggled last year going 10-13 with an ERA of 4.23. However, early reports indicate that Kelvim Escobar (18-7, 3.40) and John Lackey (19-9, 3.01) will be out until May with injuries, meaning the Mariners need to jump on the Angels in April and force them to catch up.

The biggest hurdle for Seattle this year will be usurping these Angels. Last year, the Mariners were 6-13 against the eventual Western Division Champions. In 2006, the Mariner's won two games while losing seventeen to the Oakland Athletics, while the A’s won the West.

After the first two games of 2007, Seattle had tied its number of victories against Oakland from ’06, and then continued to cruise to a 14-5 record against them. Now, the Mariners just need to pull the same trick on the Angels if they want to claim the Division. And no one wants to fight the Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers, or Indians for the Wild Card spot.

So, the Mariners enter the 2008 season with two new starters and pretty much no other changes. That could be enough to push them into the playoffs, as their only weakness last year was starting pitching. But the American League is extremely lopsided, with 2007’s contenders only improving off their recent success. Still, the Mariners were among those contenders and they arguably made the best changes of anybody in the AL for this season.