Seattle Mariners: Power Ranking Every Mariner's Performance so Far This Season

The Seattle Mariners have surprised a lot of people with their play this year. They've done amazingly, with a lot of disappointing performances. 

Chone Figgins, Jack Cust and Milton Bradley, to name a few, have been (or were) atrocious. 

However, the M's have seen an amazing amount of young guns come up from Triple-A to fill some big holes.

Dustin Ackley, Carlos Peguero and Greg Halman have all provided much needed sparks for the big league team.

But where do the young guns stack up against the veterans? Who's been the most disappointing? Who's exceeded all expectations?

Here's a look at my ranking of each Mariner's performance so far this season. 

Just Outside the List

I decided to not rank some guys—either because they are currently in the minors, they haven't made much of an impact on the team or they are Milton Bradley. Here's who didn't make the cut.

Milton Bradley

Luis Rodriguez

Ryan Langerhans

Chris Gimenez

Mike Wilson

Adam Moore

Josh Bard 

Tom Wilhelmsen

Josh Lueke

Jeff Gray

Dan Cortes

24-19: Chone Figgins Continues to Disappoint

24. Chris Ray, RP

The lightly-used reliever has an unexciting 5.24 ERA on the season.

23. Michael Saunders, CF

Saunders got his fare share of chances, but his .168/.223/.248 slash line got him demoted to Triple-A.

22. Chone Figgins, 3B

The nine-million-dollar man has been much more than disappointing this year. And last year. A return to his 2008 form is highly unlikely.

21. Jack Wilson, 2B

While providing average defense, he has provided below average offense—.230 BA with three doubles and six RBI.

20. Jack Cust, DH

It's never fun when your DH is hovering around the Mendoza line. At least Cust—who was signed for his power and has all of three home runs—walks at a good clip.

19. Mike Carp, LF

He's only had 35 at-bats, so his effect on the team has been minimal, but you would like to see a little more power from the guy who was murdering Triple-A. 

18-13: Some Young, Some Old

18. Aaron Laffey, RP

He has also been used sparingly this year, but Laffey has put up an impressive 1.93 ERA. His WHIP is a little high, however, which gives cause for concern.

17. Carlos Peguero, LF

Peguero has come up and provided some nice power every once in a while, but 41 strikeouts and seven walks in 129 plate appearances is, well, not good. His defense isn't anything to write home about, either.

16. Greg Halman, OF

Halman, although with very limited playing time, as been a nice player to have off the bench. He's hitting .353 while playing decent defense in center and left. 

15. Jamey Wright, RP

Wright hasn't been dominant, but he has been a nice right-handed guy to have in the sixth or seventh. The 3.18 ERA is good. The 1.35 WHIP is not.

14. Ichiro, RF

It's clear that the hitting is coming back, but a .275 average—although that leads the team—with no power and frankly poor defense isn't anything special.

13. Franklin Gutierrez, CF

The hitting has disappeared for Guti, who started the season on the DL, but the defense has been as good as ever. He has saved a lot of runs in a short amount of time.  

12-7: Dustin Ackley Gets Top 7 After Just 2 Weeks

12. Jason Vargas, SP

He's had some great starts and some not-so-great starts, resulting in a stellar 3.88 ERA and 1.21 WHIP.

11. Miguel Olivo, C

The batting average (.222) is low, but he's been one of Seattle's biggest power threats with 12 home runs. He should also get a little credit calling games for this pitching staff. 

10. Brandon League, RP

He's had some hiccups and, as a closer, he could be more dominating (21 SO in 33 innings), but 21 saves and a 3.48 ERA is very impressive. 

9. David Pauley, RP

League might be the closer, but Pauley has been Seattle's most important reliever this season. He's pitched over 43 innings, putting up a 1.44 ERA and insane 0.87 WHIP. 

8. Brendan Ryan, SS

Believe it or not, Brendan Ryan has probably been Seattle's most consistent hitter throughout the season. He's only hitting .252, but he constantly provides timely hitting, and has given the M's good defense at short. 

7. Dustin Ackley, 2B

If he had been here for more than 12 games, Ackley would be No. 1 on the list. He's hit for power and average, and played arguably the best infield defense on the team during his short stint. The future is very, very bright. 

6. Adam Kennedy, Util

I'd be willing to go out on a limb and say if Kennedy was Seattle's third baseman for the whole year, they would have three-to-five more wins. 

Kennedy hasn't played full time, but he is second on the team in doubles, tied for third in home runs, tied for third in RBI and second in average (not counting Ackley or Halman). And over at third base, he's put up a UZR of 2.2 in just 62 innings, which is very impressive.

Kennedy would probably get the award for most underrated player on the team.

5. Felix Hernandez, SP

Because the expectations are always so high for Felix Hernandez, some might even want to put him lower on this list.

His numbers, however, speak otherwise.

Felix has a 3.35 ERA, a 1.194 WHIP and 124 strikeouts, good for third in the majors. Add in the fact that he's probably getting a little tired (first in the majors in total pitches), and it's yet another stellar year for the reigning Cy Young winner. 

4. Doug Fister, SP

Doug Fister has suddenly turned into an automatic seven- or eight-inning starter every time out. He's been the definition of consistent. 

Although he's been one of the most unlucky pitchers in the majors (sixth worst run support), and has only recorded three wins in 16 tries, Fister holds a sparkling 3.18 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP.

He's only struck out 70 batters on the year, but the 27-year-old is extremely efficient. He rarely walks anyone, and he produces a healthy amount of ground balls.

3. Erik Bedard, SP

Recent DL stint—he's only expected to miss one start—aside, Erik Bedard has been nothing short of spectacular this year. 

Everyone had pretty much given up on Bedard entering this year, and he has proved all his naysayers wrong. 

He's put up a 3.00 ERA and 1.11 WHIP. Those numbers are even more impressive considering the terrible four starts Bedard had to start the year. Take those four starts out, and he only has a 1.76 ERA and 0.86 ERA.

Um, wow. 

Bedard has been good. Like, better-than-his-days-in-Baltimore good.

Knock on wood that he's back in the same form in a week.

2. Justin Smoak, 1B

On a team that lacks a lot of hitting, Justin Smoak has continued to do his part.

Smoak ranks first on the Mariners in home runs (12), first in RBI (40), fourth in average (.242), second in OBP (.345), first in slugging (.449) and first in OPS (.794).

It's scary to think what the 24-year-old could do if he had some lineup protection around him, but nonetheless, it has been a terrific season.

Smoak has easily answered the questions surrounding him at the beginning of the season. 

1. Michael Pineda, SP

People were expecting Michael Pineda to be good, but no one was expecting the rookie to do this. 

Pineda has an ERA of 2.65 and a WHIP of 1.03; both good for first on the team. He strikes out 24.3 percent of the hitters he faces, also good for first on the team. He's efficient, too. Of the pitches he throws, 68 percent go for strikes. That one's good for fifth in the majors, just one percentage point behind Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee. 

Pineda has been scary good this year, and you have to think: Without an innings limit—which he inevitably will get—he could make a run at Cy Young.