30 thoughts about this young Mariners team through 30 games
The Mariners have reached the halfway point of this oddball season with an 11-19 record, and wrapped up their first half with a three-game sweep against the Rangers.
They’re still hovering near the American League West basement, and even in a shortened season, will likely miss out on the playoffs again this year.
But, this season, even before it was turned upside down by the COVID-19 pandemic, was supposed to be focused on development. The Mariners weren’t gearing up to make a deep playoff run or compete for a division title. They were concentrating on bringing their next wave of young prospects up, and helping them grow into sustainable big leaguers.
In that respect, they’ve made a lot of progress through 30 games, and they have 30 left to continue building for seasons to come.
“The number of young guys that have stepped up and tried to grab hold of something here with this ball club has been great to see,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said during a video call Sunday. “And we’re going to find out even more here in the second half. So, I’m really happy with the development.
“We all would have liked to win a few more games, but coming into this season, it was about the development of our players and making sure they continue to get better, and that’s what we’re seeing. When I say we’re growing that’s what I mean. We keep watering the plants, make sure they get enough sunshine and they’ll continue to grow, and that’s what we’re seeing right now.”
Here are 30 more thoughts about this young Mariners team through 30 games:
1. You had to know this would begin with several entries about American League Rookie of the Year front runner Kyle Lewis. Here’s a look at Lewis’ 106 at-bats in the first half: He’s hitting .368/.456/.585 with 24 runs scored, two doubles, seven homers, 19 RBI, 18 walks and two stolen bases. He leads all qualified rookies in … pretty much everything.
2. He has his teammates’ votes for the award. Asked to describe Lewis last week, Justus Sheffield said this: “Rookie of the Year. That’s all I’ve got to say.” Justin Dunn said this of Lewis’ start: “I say it all the time, that’s Showtime. Hopefully here in a couple months it’ll be ‘ROY.’ He’s a blessed player, and he’s been doing this for a while, so I’m glad for him to come out and do it on this level, and people to finally see and really understand what he can do on a baseball field.”
3. Lewis’ 39 hits are also top-three in the majors. The only big leaguers ahead of him as of Tuesday morning were Colorado’s Charlie Blackmon (45) and the Angels’ David Fletcher (40).
4. Less exciting than the hits and homers, but also impressive, Lewis leads the Mariners with his 18 walks — a mark that also ranks tied for fifth in the AL — and his swing-and-miss has drastically dropped in the past three weeks. His first 50 plate appearances this season, he was striking out at a 38% percent clip. His past 75 plate appearances, that rate is down to 12%.
“He has done an unbelievably just incredible job of shrinking the strike zone,” Servais said recently. “He is going up there, he has a definite plan, he’s looking for certain pitches in certain parts of the zone, and he’s not chasing.”
5. It’s not all about the hits for Lewis. He consistently talks about being a complete player and has had his share of highlights in center field. There was one catch at the wall last week in LA that left the Dodgers’ dugout stunned.
Lewis, who is 6-foot-4, said recently he has been working on the wall jumps for a while.
“I felt like there were opportunities with my height, and my ability to jump and my athleticism,” he said. “I want to take advantage of that and not just let that go by the wayside. I’ve been working on that since college, trying to be able to time jumps at the wall and see if I can bring some back.”
6. Lewis and second baseman Shed Long Jr. have started a leaping victory celebration this season. See it following Mariners wins.
7. Evan White has gone from slumping to slugger. White debuted with the Mariners this season having never played a game above Double-A, which, understandably led to quite a slow start at the plate. His 43 strikeouts still led the majors at Seattle’s halfway point, but the bat is starting to come around. He has a double, three homers and nine RBI in his past five games, including a six-RBI game against the Rangers.
8. White is also the best defensive first baseman Seattle has had in a while, and his elite glove has only elevated the club’s infield.
“It’s fun to watch,” Servais said recently. “I mean, it’s every night. There’s something he does athletically, whether it’s his footwork around the bag, how soft his hands are picking up throws out of the dirt, the range he has, how he throws. It’s the whole package.”
9. Speaking of flashy defense, have you seen some of the plays shortstop J.P. Crawford has made this season? There was one double play he made with Long earlier this month against the A’s where he made a running leap-and-throw over a base runner so incredible it sent infielders coach Perry Hill into a frenzy on Twitter. There was another against the Dodgers recently when Crawford ran down and tagged former Mariner Chris Taylor in the base path, and then threw a strike to first as he fell down sideways.
10. Let’s round out the infield here with veteran third baseman Kyle Seager. The longest-tenured Mariner, in his 10th season, is still reliable as always in the hot corner. That hasn’t changed. What has is his incredible first half at the plate. Seager has had a few slow starts over the years. This is not one of them. He’s hitting .291/.377/.515 with eight doubles, five homers, 23 RBI, 14 walks, only 13 strikeouts and three stolen bases in 30 games played. His team-high 23 RBI rank tied for sixth in the AL.
11. Seager hit career homer No. 200 earlier this month. Here’s where he stands now among all-time Mariners homer leaders:
Ken Griffey Jr.: 417 home runs as a Mariner.
Edgar Martinez: 309.
Jay Buhner: 307.
Kyle Seager: 203.
12. In the inaugural regular season meeting of the Seager brothers in Los Angeles last week, Kyle and Corey traded jokes, homers and smirks.
13. Catcher Austin Nola didn’t get an on-field reunion with his brother, Phillies starter Aaron Nola, this summer as initially planned, but he’s feeling right at home in Seattle. His 1.080 OPS and 14 in home games this season leads the Mariners. Overall Nola is hitting .298/.344/.524 with five doubles, a triple, four homers and 16 RBI.
14. Nola has also embraced the role as Seattle’s every day catcher with Tom Murphy still out with a foot injury. The story of how Nola became a catcher in 2016 is a good one. He’s still proven a reliable option in the infield on days he is needed there as well.
15. Servais often discusses how much Nola has impressed the Mariners since he was called up last summer, debuting at 29 years old after spending eight seasons in the minors.
“Awesome first half,” Servais said recently. “I can’t say enough about the job that Austin has done and the quality of the at-bat, day in, day out. It really doesn’t matter who’s pitching, he’s got a game plan for him. I talked a few days ago about his preparation coming into games, and how he gets ready every day, and it’s very, very impressive.
“Put on top of that, what he’s doing behind the plate, he’s never caught this much in his life and is helping the young pitching staff through a lot of this stuff and carrying out game plans, and his relationship with Pete Woodworth our pitching coach has really grown. Being able to relay information through Austin, he’s helping guys play it out on the field. Very, very valuable and just love what he brings every day. Certainly he’s playing great.”
16. The Mariners have three 24-year-olds in their six-man rotation in Sheffield, Dunn and Nick Margevicius. Here’s a look at the past three starts for each:
Sheffield: 18 IP, 16 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 16 K, 1.00 ERA.
Dunn: 14 IP, 13 H, 8 R, 5 BB, 9 K, 5.14 ERA. (If you remove the game against LA when Dunn was hampered by a line drive that hit him in the ribs, Dunn has two quality starts and a 1.50 ERA.)
Margevicius: 14 2/3 IP, 13 H, 6 R, 2 BB, 13 K, 3.68 ERA.
17. Sheffield has been outstanding his past three outings dating back to his first big league win against the Rockies on Aug. 9, and has the best ERA in the AL among starters who have pitched three games in that span.
18. Dunn delivered his best start as a Mariner in Sunday’s first half finale, tossing six scoreless innings, allowing only one hit, one walk and striking out three, and earning the win as Seattle swept Texas.
19. Margevicius has proved more than capable after filling the rotation spot of injured starter Kendall Graveman. Margevicius debuted for the Padres last season as a 22-year-old, and while he may have been rushed to the majors then — he hadn’t pitched above High-A before his debut — he looks comfortable now.
“I just handled it the best I could at the time,” he said recently, recalling his first big league stint last year. “Looking back on it, maybe it was a little quick. Maybe I wasn’t quite ready for some of the things, but at the same time, I did what I could right away and had some success right away. I just hit a little struggle, and it was hard for me to bounce back from that. But, I think doing that so early and young in my career has offered me the chance to grow probably a little bit earlier than if something would have come along the line a little bit later.
“I don’t know if I was rushed or not, but I’m excited about where I’m at right now, and and continuing to learn and move forward has been great for me.”
20. Graveman was placed on the 10-day injured list with neck spasms earlier this month following his second start. He has been pitching at the club’s alternate site in Tacoma attempting to get back this season, and following a rehab start at Cheney Stadium last week opened up about what has caused the neck discomfort he has dealt with for nearly two years.
21. Taijuan Walker is making his case for comeback player of the year. He rejoined Seattle ahead of spring training after three years in Arizona, and has three quality starts in five outings since returning from Tommy John surgery. Take out his shaky first outing on July 25, and he has a 2.66 ERA with 24 strikeouts to seven walks.
22. Walker logged his 500th career strikeout in his most recent seven-inning quality start, catching former teammate Taylor looking at a cutter.
“It’s always cool to hit milestones like that,” Walker said. “Hopefully there’s many more come.”
23. Marco Gonzales is still as consistent as ever as Seattle’s ace. His 3.34 ERA across five starts is the best in the Mariners’ rotation. He has recorded 26 strikeouts to three walks.
24. Yusei Kikuchi, the only other returning pitcher in the rotation, missed a start recently with neck spasms, but the Mariners are seeing improvements from a shaky first season in 2019. He’s also seen an uptick in his fastball velocity.
25. Seattle’s bullpen has the second-worst ERA (5.72) in the AL this season, but the seventh-best (3.55) in the past week. So, it’s improving.
“Our bullpen’s been pretty solid of late,” Servais said over the weekend. “We still have a hiccup here there. It’s usually tied to throwing strikes or giving up free bases. As long as as long as we stay away from that we get pretty good results.”
26. Vancouver native Taylor Williams is now the Mariners’ all-time career saves leader among Washington-born pitchers. With his sixth save Sunday against the Rangers, he passed Karl Best (five from 1985-86), who was born in Aberdeen and attended Kent Meridian High School, as the club’s career leader. Williams, a Camas product, is also closing in on the organization’s saves record among former Washington prep pitchers. He is currently tied with Interlake’s Larry Anderson (six from 1981-82), and trails only Kennewick’s Russ Swan (11 from 1991-92).
27. Williams has been one of Seattle’s most reliable back end relievers so far this season with 17 strikeouts to four walks and a 3.00 ERA in 12 appearances. To get an opportunity like this with the hometown team? The significance isn’t lost on Williams. “I grew up as a Mariners fan, and all of my friends and family are Mariners fans, so to be able to hear from them and be able to put this jersey on and represent them means a lot,” he said recently.
28. If you are looking for a good Twitter follow, try rookie reliever Joey Gerber. Along with his jokes and polls, he can also offer some perspective on the baseball journey.
“Four summers ago I was playing town ball in rural Minnesota after posting a 7.50 ERA my freshman year of college,” he tweeted following his debut earlier this month. “Last night I made my MLB debut and faced Albert Pujols. A lot can happen in four years.”
29. There will be no more “Vogelbombs” for the Mariners. The club traded its former every day designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach to the Blue Jays for cash considerations Sunday. He was Seattle’s only All-Star selection in 2019, but was designated for assignment last week after opening the season 5-for-53. His home run to the third deck in right field last season will be remembered fondly.
30. While the Mariners get ready for the second half of the season, many of their up-and-coming prospects will continue working out in Tacoma. The biggest highlight from Cheney Stadium in the first half? That would be Bellingham native Austin Shenton taming the center field wall.
“That’s a big boy home run right there,” Mariners outfielder Jake Fraley said the day it happened. “We definitely gave him a lot of credit when he came in the dugout. I think we’ll probably be talking about that for a lot more days to come.”
This story was originally published August 25, 2020 at 5:00 AM.
