Seattle Mariners Need To Blow Up Current Team for a Brighter Future

Instead of the spackle and spot-welding Mariners management has been using to try to fix the roster the past few years, it's time to break out the dynamite and reshape this team's future. If the team really wants to move forward, it's time to say goodbye to the past.

The team hasn't made the playoffs since the 2002 season, and though it's made extended runs at an AL West crown in a couple of seasons (see 2007 and 2009), it's been very much out of the race by the time August rolls around.

The grind of a 162-game season is without a doubt tiring, and this team hasn't been built to survive the dog days of summer that separate the contenders from the pretenders. After a fair number of managers and coaches have failed, when do the powers that be realize the problem may stem from the players on the field?

Consider just about everyone but a few members on the team expendable, and it's not too hard to imagine brighter days in the team's future. The team needs to be aggressive and start acting like the large-market team it masquerades as. The emergence of the Tampa Bay Rays and resurgence of the Pittsburgh Pirates should be enough to prove that any team can reverse its fortunes and figure out how to start winning games.

But every team has a nucleus that it can't win without, and through clever scouting and drafting, the Mariners have the core of a future contender. Surrounding it with the talent it takes to survive the increasingly tough American League, however, is another matter.

The core is the untouchables—the players that the Mariners can't even consider parting ways with for nothing short of a Godfather deal. If they want to get serious about being legitimate contenders, they can't do it without players of this caliber.

Felix Hernandez

There is absolutely no way the team can part with reigning Cy Young Award winner and strikeout machine King Felix. His support has been a little better this season than last, believe it or not, yet his numbers have experienced a bit of a downturn.

Honestly, this is something that should be expected; his numbers spiked last year, and his stat line for this season would be right in step with the progress he'd made over his first five or six years in the majors. He's a young pitcher (still only 25) who is only starting to realize his full potential and how to use his complete arsenal of pitches.

In his younger years, Felix would try to rely on blowing his fastball by every hitter and would get frustrated when they would sit on it and watch the at times inconsistent curveball go by.

Now, he relies on a two-seam fastball that sacrifices speed for movement and utilizes his strong curveball and changeup. Where he was merely a thrower early on his career, he has since learned to be a pitcher, and his stats have improved as a result.

Many media members consider his departure from the team inevitable, especially if the front office isn't willing to surround him with better talent. While he may be tired of playing for a perennial loser, the team has said it will do whatever it takes to keep him, and help may really be just around the corner for the team.

Dustin Ackley

Few young hitters look as natural and comfortable at the plate as Ackley. The list is pretty much Ackley, Jason Heyward of the Atlanta Braves and Buster Posey of the San Francisco Giants, as well as Nationals prospect Bryce Harper, at least from what I've heard.

Considered the consolation prize for losing out in the Stephen Strasburg sweepstakes, Ackley has been the complete hitter he was advertised as coming out of North Carolina and handled the move from right field to second base almost seamlessly. Meanwhile, Strasburg is out for the rest of the year with an arm injury that many said was inevitable given his violent throwing motion.

Ackley's debut came against the team with the decidedly best pitching staff in baseball in the Philadelphia Phillies, and he held his own, including knocking his first dinger. Currently, he's the only Mariner hitting above .300, and his line of .305/.366/.534 has provided plenty of reason for optimism when considering where this team is headed.

His progression through the farm system has showed fans that general manager Jack Zduriencik may know exactly what he is doing. All in all, he's one of the brightest spots in the team's future and has proven repeatedly why he's considered the top everyday prospect.

Michael Pineda

This would be the team's top overall prospect. He's handcuffed by the fact that he only plays once every five games and is overshadowed in Seattle's rotation by King Felix.

Though it was long decided that he would at some point make his major league debut this season, I don't think anyone realized that he would make the rotation coming out of spring training. He has more than outperformed expectations this year and has proven himself a force for opposing batters to worry about for years to come.

Carrying himself with the poise of a veteran, he's posted a 9-7 record and a 3.53 ERA while striking out 133 in only 130 innings. His win-loss record is skewed by the lack of run support the Mariners provide. Still, he made the All-Star team as a rookie and pitched a dominant 1-2-3 inning in his appearance against the National League.

Teamed with Hernandez, this rotation features a one-two punch that can hold its own against possibly any in the majors. If the team finds its hitting stroke, these two could one day be battling each other for a Cy Young—if the team discovers how to hit.

Justin Smoak

Smoak is a power-hitting first baseman with tremendous upside and could benefit immensely from an upgrade in surrounding talent in the lineup. His stats haven't been great—he's posting a .218/.313/.385 line—but he's showed the flashes that made him the centerpiece and coveted prize of last year's Cliff Lee trade.

The reason for his subpar stat line rests largely in the fact that there isn't any hitter in the lineup that can protect him. Pitchers realize that they can pitch around him and not give him much to hit, knowing that no else comes close to posing the threat that he does. Even Ackley can't provide the power that Smoak can when he's in a rhythm.

It's also easy to forget that Smoak is still only in his second big league season and has plenty of time to start realizing his potential. It doesn't help that Mariners fans have grown impatient for an effective power hitter that they haven't had since the Kingdome heydays of Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez and Jay Buhner.

Still, Smoak projects as a big part of the team's future and at times has shown he is capable of taking advantage of Safeco Field's spacious gaps, though his strikeout rate is a bit alarming. But fans should be willing to overlook his strikeouts once he starts putting the ball in the outfield seats.

Nick Franklin

Though he is still a raw prospect who hasn't played above Double-A, his surprising power and consistent plate approach have been welcome news for Mariners fans. He's replaced Carlos Triunfel as the team's next can't-miss prospect, and he should experience a numbers spike once he reaches the extremely hitter-friendly parks of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League.

Still, he's still a couple of years (at least) away from the majors, and his progress in the farm system will be closely followed. He's young (only 20) and has transitioned well from high school to the pros. He'll form a formidable double-play combo with Ackley that should rival any in the game. It'll be exciting to see what Franklin brings to the table once he gets the call-up.

The flip side is that Franklin could easily become another case of promising prospects that never really pan out. It's an epidemic that has happened too many times for the Mariners with the likes of Chris Snelling, Clint Nageotte, Jose Lopez, Jeff Clement, Matt Tuiasosopo, Michael Saunders and so on.

Ichiro

This is more for sentimental reasons than anything else. The huge drop in his usually stellar production has been frightening, and he's showed the signs of physical aging that he was able to fight off for so long while remaining an effective, if not dangerous, player.

Still, Ichiro has showed the team enough loyalty that it wouldn't feel right for the team to cut its ties with him. Though it seems foregone that it will never happen under the watch of Howard Lincoln and Chuck Armstrong, his huge salary figure and lack of production make it a possibility.

Though I think that this season may still be an aberration, the eventual departure of Ichiro is the first domino that needs to fall for this team to move forward. He makes $18 million per year as a primarily singles hitter who isn't the vocal leader in the clubhouse that many teams expect from a veteran of his stature.

The team has many moves that need to be made. I'm willing to forgive center fielder Franklin Gutierrez's atrocious year because he never really got a spring training and still plays harder than most in center field.

The jury is still out on players like Greg Halman and Mike Carp, who are still young and haven't really shown the consistency of big leaguers, though both are a step up from what Michael Saunders was providing.

The team really needs to find a catcher and soon. It can't be successful with Miguel Olivo there too much longer, and no catching prospect has shown to be too worthy. Adam Moore has been largely disappointing and is already 26 with a major knee injury under his belt.

Moves need to be made for certain, and this team can't contend unless it gets drastically better at a few positions. Upgrades are on the way, free agency can provide an instant boost at shortstop, designated hitter, catcher and left field and (hopefully) there's no way that Smoak won't improve his stats at first base.

Help is coming, and hopefully the fans will still be around to see it. For now, they'll have to sit and wait—something that the long baseball season provides plenty of time for.