Underrated MLB offseason: Seattle Mariners
The BIG move: Teoscar Hernandez (OF)
The Seattle Mariners acquired Teoscar Hernandez from the Toronto Blue Jays in a deal centered around relief pitcher Erik Swanson. Hernandez provides a significant upgrade to an outfield that, excluding rookie sensation Julio Rodriguez, was pretty underwhelming last season. While not a terrific defender, Hernandez’s batting profile provides immense optimism for another productive offensive season. Hernandez hammers baseballs on a consistent basis. Each of the past three seasons, Hernandez has been in the top 10th percentile in max exit velocity and xSLG. In two of the past three seasons, Hernandez has been in the top 5th percentile in exit velocity. Adding a bat of Hernandez’s caliber gives me hope that this will be one of the strongest Mariners teams that we have seen in some time. While giving up Swanson isn’t ideal, this Mariners team still sports one of baseball’s strongest bullpens headlined by Andres Munoz and Paul Sewald. Especially so with the Mariners, a strong reliever for a strong bat is a great deal.
Under-the-radar: Kolten Wong (2B)
Second base was a pretty big weakness for the Seattle Mariners in 2022. Adam Frazier did not perform as the team had hoped, and there were few other capable second base options behind him. While Wong had a subpar defensive season last year, Wong has long been considered one of the better defensive second basemen in baseball. Wong had a miraculous 17 DRS in 2019, so I think it is fair to expect a strong defensive year from him. On the offensive side of things, Wong provides tremendous value against right-handed pitchers, as he he had a 135 wRC+ against righties last season. Wong was porous against lefties, but the Mariners will likely give Dylan Moore run at second against left-handed starters, where Moore has proven to be effective.
Other small moves: AJ Pollock (OF):
Jarred Kelenic has been tremendous this spring and is still just 23 years old. However, he hasn’t proved much at the MLB level yet in his career. The acquisition of Pollock provides the Mariners with a safety net if Kelenic struggles early in the season. Pollock provides the Mariners with, at the least, a fantastic platoon option that would allow Kelenic to sit against lefties.