Ace pitcher Felix Hernandez is one of the best pitchers in the American League. Seattle has struggled for years, but Hernandez may finally have the supporting cast to help the Mariners contend for a championship in 2016.
Chris Ransom follow @DraftUtopia Posted on 3/7/2016.
Seattle Mariners Batting Lineup
NO.
Batter
POS.
BA
HR
RBI
BB
SO
SB
1
Austin Jackson
CF
.256
4
47
47
144
20
2
Dustin Ackley
LF
.245
14
45
32
90
8
3
Robinson Cano
2B
.314
14
82
61
68
10
4
Nelson Cruz
DH
.271
40
108
55
140
4
5
Kyle Seager
3B
.268
25
96
52
118
7
6
Logan Morrison
1B
.262
11
38
24
59
5
7
Mike Zunino
C
.199
22
60
17
158
0
8
Seth Smith
RF
.266
12
48
69
87
1
9
Brad Miller
SS
.221
10
36
34
95
4
Seattle Mariners Batting Lineup Summary: Austin Jackson is an excellent lead off bat. Jackson stole 20 bases in 2014.
The Seattle Mariners got two starers in the 2009 MLB Draft when they took Dustin Ackley in the first round with the second pick and then took third baseman Kyle Seager in the third round of the same draft. Ackley has the versatility to play anywhere on the outfield or the infield. Seager has improved his batting average and home runs in each season. Seager also has the versatility to play infield at any position. Seattle will have Ackley batting second and Seager batting fifth in this lineup. Both 26-year-olds are expected to keep performing at a high level.
Robinson Cano will bat third once again. Cano batted .314 in 2014 after signing that 10-year contract with the Mariners in 2014 following his departure from the New York Yankees. Seattle also added Nelson Cruz as a DH and he will bat fourth in this lineup. Cruz hit 40 home runs with the Orioles in 2014. The biggest issue with Cruz is that he turns 34-years-old in 2015.
Batting sixth is Logan Morrison. Morrison has the versatility to play first base or right field. Morrison stood out in his first season with the Mariners by posting a .262 batting average.
Mike Zunino batted eighth in the lineup last year after being the third overall pick in the 2012 MLB Draft. Zunino hit 22 home runs and 60 RBI's, but he also had a .199 batting average and 157 strikeouts. So far in Spring Training, Zunino has .310 batting average. If his batting average is that good in the regular season, then Seattle might end up winning the American League.
Nelson Cruz wasn't the only right fielder Seattle brought in during Free Agency. Cruz will play DH, and former San Diego Padre Seth Smith will likely start if he's healthy. If Smith does not work out, then former Chicago Cub Justin Ruggiano will start at right field in the event that Smith does not recover from his Spring Training injury.
Shortstop Brad Miller closes out this batting lineup. Miller has the versatility to play shortstop or second base.
Seattle Mariners Starting Rotation
NO.
Pitcher
IP
H
ERA
BB
SO
W
L
1
Felix Hernandez
236
170
2.14
46
248
15
6
2
Hisashi Iwakuma
179
167
3.52
21
154
15
6
3
James Paxton
74
60
3.04
29
59
6
4
4
J.A. Happ
158
160
4.22
51
133
11
11
5
Taijuan Walker
38
31
2.61
18
34
2
3
Seattle Mariners Starting Rotation Summary: Felix Hernandez and Iwakuma are the only reliable starters in this rotation.
Paxton can be a solid #3 if he can get more innings. J.A. Happ has a bad ERA. He should be the #5 pitcher. Taijuan Walker's lack of experience is the only reason why he's not the #4 pitcher. In a year from now, Seattle will be much better with an experienced Walker in the 4 spot and Danny Hultzen in the 5 spot. For now, this will be Oakland's rotation.
Seattle Mariners Bullpen
NO.
Pitcher
IP
H
ERA
BB
SO
W
L
LR
Tyler Olsen
0
0
0
0
0
0
0
LR
Erasmo Ramirez
75.1
82
5.26
34
60
1
6
MR
Dominic Leone
66.1
52
2.17
25
70
8
2
MR
Charlie Furbush
42.1
40
3.61
9
51
1
5
MR
Tom Wilhelmsen
79.1
47
2.27
36
72
3
2
MR
Danny Farquhar
71
58
2.66
22
81
3
1
SU
Yoervis Medina
57
48
2.68
28
60
5
3
CL
Fernando Rodney
66.1
61
2.85
28
76
1
6
Seattle Mariners Bullpen Summary: Seattle's bullpen has mixed reviews. You have a team that is extremely thin at long reliever. You have 5 middle relievers competing to be the set up pitcher. The plus is that all five of these pitchers have ERA's under 4. This is good problem to have since middle relievers can pitch 20 pitches before fatiguing rather than 10 pitches. That helps the bullpen out tremendously.
Your only sure thing is Fernando Rodney at closer. He had a 2.85 ERA and 48 saves as a 37-year-old in 2014. This year Rodney turns 38, and you don't know who will be the closer when Rodney is gone. I expect Rodney to remain the closer, but his ERA went up to 3.90 down the stretch last season. Rodney may regress in 2015. If he does that could keep Seattle from making the playoffs.
Prediction: Seattle and Cleveland will play for a spot in the ALDS as the one wild card team. If Felix Hernandez can outsell Chris Kluber, then Seattle will get a chance to take on the Oakland Athletics who I believe have the best AL record in 2015. Even if the Athletics defeat Seattle or Cleveland due to having the better starting rotation, I still believe the Orioles will win the American League in 2015.
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