For the second straight season, the Mariners finished with a record above .500 and still missed the playoffs. The 2024 Mariners were in first place of the AL West for a healthy chunk in 2024 and had a 10-game lead in the division in June. Still, Seattle missed October baseball despite one of the best pitching staffs in the league. Here’s our recap of the Mariners’ 2024 season.
The Offense
| Stat | Number | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Runs Scored | 676 | 21st |
| Home Runs | 185 | t-12th |
| OPS | .687 | 22nd |
| Whiff% | 28.1% | 28th |
| Hard Hit% | 40.5% | 8th |
The Pitching
| Stat | Number | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Starters’ ERA | 3.38 | 1st |
| Relievers’ ERA | 3.71 | 9th |
| Strikeouts | 1,416 | 9th |
| Whiff% | 27.0% | 3rd |
| Chase% | 30.2% | 3rd |
The Good
The Mariners’ pitching staff was objectively one of the best in baseball last season. Seattle pitchers posted the league’s second-best ERA (3.49), best opponent’s batting average (.220), and finished in the top ten in strikeouts.
Three of Seattle’s starters — Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller, and George Kirby — finished in the top 10 of the league in WHIP, with Gilbert (0.89) on top. Kirby, meanwhile, led the league in BB/9 (1.1) for the second straight year.
Gilbert was a machine for the Mariners in his fourth Major League season. The right-hander was a first-time All-Star, led the league in innings pitched (208.2 IP), and struck out a career-high 220 batters.
This was still very much the same Gilbert, one who has one of the better four-seamers in the game thanks to elite extension (100th percentile). But, with some arsenal tweaks.
The 27-year-old used the four-seamer less, making hitters have to guess as he leaned more on his slider and splitter more. His slider was used a career-high 32% of the time, while his splitter — one with elite drop — netted him a 50% Whiff% on the pitch.
Two names not yet mentioned — but ones who also pitched well — were Luis Castillo and Bryan Woo. No, Castillo didn’t have as dominant a campaign compared to 2023. His K/9 dropped from 10.0 to 9.0 and his stuff was more hittable. But, Castillo was an effective innings eater. He threw six or more innings in 19 of 30 starts.
Woo, meanwhile, owned a pristine 0.90 WHIP and leveraged a powerful four-seamer with great carry. However, Seattle was careful with his innings, as Woo threw just 121.1 IP in 2024.
Seattle’s bullpen, meanwhile, performed up to par without setup man Gregory Santos for much of 2024. Journeyman Trent Thornton struck out 77 over 72.1 IP, while Tayler Saucedo was yet again an effective lefty. Collin Snider, a former Royals reliever, turned in an exceptional season (1.94 ERA, 47 K over 41.2 IP) for Seattle.
Snider simplified his arsenal, leaning less on the sinker and more on a four-seamer with a flat approach angle, a term that’s became en vogue of late. It was a similar transformation to Paul Sewald‘s, as the ex-Mariner reliever turned his career around after doing the same, He also ditched his slider for a sweeper with great results.
The Bad
While Julio Rodriguez notched a 20-20 campaign for the third straight season, it wasn’t all sunshine for the 23-year-old. Rodriguez posted a .690 OPS over the first half, the worst half of his three-year MLB career.
Rodriguez’s mechanics got out of whack at times, as noted on this site back in September. He got on track in a big way in September, when Rodriguez hit .328/.349/.546 (.895 OPS) with seven home runs in the last month. But, he still hit for significantly less power (.136 ISO) as a whole in 2024.
One could argue Rodriguez’s struggles at the plate were a microcosm of the Mariners’ woes at the plate this past season. Rodriguez was far from Seattle’s worst hitter at the plate. Because, many hitters on Seattle’s team this year didn’t meet expectations.
Ty France posted a .662 OPS with Seattle before the Mariners cut him in the summer. J.P. Crawford, a breakout performer in 2023, played in 105 games and recorded a .625 OPS. Mitch Garver, arguably the M’s biggest pickup last winter, hit .172/.286/.341 over 114 games.
The one true bright spot from the Mariners’ lineup last year was Cal Raleigh, their best run producer. Raleigh hit 34 home runs and drove in 100, both career-highs. Seattle also received strong contributions from platoon bat Luke Raley and Victor Robles, the latter of whom was an outcast from Washington and hit .328 with the Mariners.
But, it wasn’t enough.
Sure, the M’s had power in their lineup and that showed in the metrics. The Mariners had the fourth-best Barrel% (9.0%) in the league but only slugged .376, sixth-worst in the league. Why? Well, too many whiffs and strikeouts. Seattle led the league in strikeouts (1,625) in a season where Seattle was a team that sold out for power often — and it showed at the plate.
Too many ugly swings and too many times out in front will do that to a team.
Early Projected Lineup for 2025
- C: Cal Raleigh
- 1B: Tyler Locklear
- 2B: Josh Rojas
- 3B: Dylan Moore
- SS: J.P. Crawford
- OF: Randy Arozarena (LF), Julio Rodriguez (CF), Luke Raley/Victor Robles (RF)
- DH: Mitch Garver
- SP: Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Bryce Miller, Bryan Woo
- RP: Andres Munoz, Gregory Santos, Tayler Saucedo, Trent Thornton, Collin Snider, Austin Voth, Carlos Vargas, JT Chargois
The rumor mill surrounding the Mariners has the team interested in bats, particularly infielders. Given their depth chart, that’s not much of a shock.
Seattle finished among the worst teams in the league in power last season and need to remedy that somehow. The M’s traded Eugenio Suarez last winter, who soared in the second half with the D-Backs. Meanwhile, their gamble on Jorge Polanco didn’t pay off, and the Mariners voided his 2025 team option and sent him to market.
The Mariners are slated to have an increased payroll in 2025. But, that’s primarily because players like Logan Gilbert, Cal Raleigh, George Kirby, and Randy Arozarena, among others, are arbitration-eligible. For Kirby and Raleigh, it’s their first time in this rodeo. And, it could mean at some point in the next year or two, the Mariners may need to shake up their core for payroll purposes.
Seattle was very cautious with their payroll last winter and need to expense for future deals for the likes of Gilbert and Kirby.
Thus, it’s unclear, however, whether the M’s could bring in a big name like Alex Bregman or Christian Walker.
The M’s do have interesting young players, including Tyler Locklear and on-base machine Cole Young, in their system who could be permament Major Leaguers soon. Those pieces could be vital, to keep Seattle competitive over the coming years.