Offseason news has slowed down recently relative to what December brang, but a few top-tier free agents — namely Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, and Jack Flaherty — are still available. Teams still have time to make moves, even as spring training nears.
The Chicago Cubs' pitchers and catchers report to training camp on Feb. 9, while the rest of the league's pitchers and catchers report between Feb. 11-13. Position players tend to report five days later than their pitchers and catchers.
Looking towards the 2025 season, I'll be examining teams that I deem to be pretenders, potential surprises, or those that are outright lost in the coming weeks.
In this article, we will discuss three pretenders: teams that, on the surface, appear to be good, but whose outlook is not as promising when looking under the hood.
Seattle Mariners
In 2024, the Seattle Mariners finished three-and-a-half games behind the Houston Astros for the AL West division title and one game behind the Detroit Tigers for the last Wild Card spot. The team succeeded by heavily relying on pitching. In ERA, the starting rotation finished first (3.38), and the bullpen ranked ninth (3.78).
The offense, however, was atrocious, ranking 29th in BA (.224), first in SOs (1,625), and 22nd in RBIs (642).
With Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo, George Kirby, Bryce Miller, and Bryan Woo returning to the mound in 2025, one would think adding offense would be a priority. However, the only notable acquisition to the lineup thus far has been Donovan Solano, who does nothing to improve the offense besides getting on base. Over 283 at-bats playing for the San Diego Padres in 2024, he hit .286/.343/.417 with eight home runs and 35 RBIs.
The Mariners full rotation are all in the Top 20 in odds to win the AL Cy Young.
— Seattle Mariners ON Tap (@MarinersONTap) January 22, 2025
Who do you think is the best bet?
- Logan Gilbert - +1600 (6th)
- George Kirby - +2000 (10th)
- Luis Castillo - +2500 (14th)
- Bryce Miller - +3500 (18th)
- Bryan Woo - +3500 (19th) https://t.co/h3iQtnJDg9
There is still time to improve the offense. Over the last few weeks, Castillo has been linked to many trade rumors in the team's attempt to add some hitters, but nothing has come close to being completed.
Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso, and some lower-tier sluggers are still available in free agency, and they could all significantly impact one of the worst offenses from last season.
Perhaps the biggest factor in the Mariners' placement on this list that the AL West may be surprisingly strong next season. The Houston Astros have won the division title six of the previous seven seasons (though they may take a step back if they lose Bregman on top of Kyle Tucker and Ryan Pressly). The only exception was the Athletics winning the 2020 COVID-19 shortened season.
The Rangers, 2023 World Series Champions, should be healthy after an injury-plagued 2024 season, and the Athletics, who showed flashes of being able to win last season despite their low payroll, decided to start spending money on veteran players now that the team has left Oakland. Even the Angels have been more active than the Mariners this offseason.
The Mariners' lack of productive offensive pieces could hinder the team's ability to win in what could be a highly competitive division.