First Impressions: 2022 Seattle Mariners
The Mariners recently had their first day off of the 2022 regular season so I thought I’d break down my first impressions of the team thus far. Although it’s likely I’ll be miserable in a couple weeks given the pain of the past 20+ years. Any optimism may be gone. I’m used to the disappointment.
But for now, I’m hopeful that what I’ve seen from the first few series of the season, including a series win against the AL West favorite Houston Astros, is a sign of improvement and good things to come.
So without further adieu, here are my first impressions – both positive and negative – thus far:
Matt Brash is a stud. The M’s fifth starter may be the best fifth starter in the league. I don’t think that’s hyperbole. He has 11 Ks over 10.2 innings with 7 walks. His fastball is live in the mid to high 90s and he may have the best slider on the team. It dances with velo.
The bullpen is once again the Mariner’s greatest strength. They may have lost Casey Sadler, but the combination of Sewald, Streckenrider, and Castillo at the backend is lethal. Arguably the most exciting, however, is Andres Munoz. He can pump it in at 102 mph. His slider is up there with Brash. Few teams will be able to score on this pen.
The rotation needs one more starter. Should someone get injured – and it’s unfortunately inevitable – the M’s will be in trouble. They lack depth at starting pitching, with really only five guys capable of doing the job. Dipoto needs to sign some reinforcements and soon.
Speaking of the rotation, Marco Gonzalez has been shaky, although he’s a notoriously slow starter. He had a rough beginning to 2021 before finishing strong. The Twins roughed him up, but then he was magical against the Astros. The guy is a fighter – we just need to be patient.
J-Rod show will be jubilant. In the second game of the season, he sparked the comeback against the Twins. After the game he approached Munoz who had lost the lead as if to say, “We weren’t letting you get the L for this one.” I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – he’s got a Magic Johnson like aura to him. The umps have been squeezing his strike zone in the first few games, but Julio also needs to adjust and protect the inside part of the plate.
Ty France will hit over .300. I picked this guy up on my fantasy team and couldn’t be happier, especially after the bomb he blasted to center this past Sunday. He’s a solid anchor to the lineup and always finds a way to rack up hits or get on base. Dependable and consistent, although I would move him to #3 in the order.
Because J.P. Crawford should be hitting #2. Why Servais continues to bat him lower in the order is beyond me. I get why you might want a secondary lead off hitter in the 9 hole, but he’s too good right now not to hit higher. Especially with Adam Frazier getting on base regularly, their one-two combo could be brutal for opposing pitching. Then let the big boys behind them drive them in.
Suarez will hit 50 HRs and Servais is bleaching his hair. I heard this, I think from best writer Ryan Divish on his pod. That if new third-basemen Eugenio Suarez goes yard 50+ times this year, Servais is doing a variation of the half black half blonde mop Geno is currently rocking. With the power he has displayed to date, I think it will happen. The ball flies off his bat (when he makes contact). Even if he hits around .200, that’s basically the production the M’s were getting from Seager this past year.
Kelenic will be fine. That screamer he hit off the foul pole in Chicago should be enough evidence of that. Mariners fans have been giving him an unfair shake both at the ballpark (heckling) and on social media (trolling). The season is young. Kelenic is too talented and cares too much not to hit. The latter of which already makes him better than Dustin Ackley so don’t make that comparison.
Those are my initial reactions. I still stand by my projection for this team finishing second in the AL West and competing with a stacked eastern division for a wild card spot. We’ll see though. The M’s have been perennial disappointments for decades now, so we can’t get too hopeful after just 10 games of .500 baseball.
But this group is fun.
What are your initial reactions? Did I miss anything?
