The Mariners had the game in hand Wednesday, and that’s what makes the collapse sting. Emerson Hancock gave them six innings of two-run ball in the rubber game against the Reds, and Seattle was sitting on a 3-2 lead with the late innings lined up exactly the way Dan Wilson wanted.
That should have meant a clean handoff to Eduard Bazardo, Gabe Speier and Andrés Muñoz. Nine outs.
One win. Instead, the night unraveled fast.
Bazardo let the Reds’ eighth and ninth hitters reach with one out in the seventh, then watched Sal Stewart turn a right-on-right matchup into a three-run blast that flipped the game and sent Cincinnati to a 5-3 win. The Reds took the series, and Seattle was left with another loss that fit a pattern the club just can’t seem to break.
For the 78th time this season, the Mariners got three earned runs or fewer from a starting pitcher. For the 33rd time, they still lost. That’s the third-most such losses in the American League, behind only the Angels and Tigers.
The bullpen has been part of the problem all year, even if the injuries explain some of it. Matt Brash, Carlos Vargas and Cooper Criswell are all on the IL, and that has left Seattle leaning on names like Michael Rucker, Cole Wilcox and Nick Davila in spots that can get ugly in a hurry. But the issues go beyond the depth pieces.
Out of Muñoz, Bazardo, Speier and Jose A. Ferrer, only Muñoz has an exceptional strikeout rate. Once the ball is put in play, the margin for error gets thin fast, and Wednesday was another reminder of how quickly things can go sideways.
The numbers on the offense are just as bleak. Seattle has now been held to three runs or fewer in 53 games, the fourth-most in MLB.
Even more telling: the Mariners are 8-27 when they don’t hit a home run. For a lineup that isn’t built to manufacture runs the hard way, that’s a brutal place to live.
The second half was supposed to offer a reset after a 48-49 first half, but the Mariners came out of the All-Star break and went 3-3 at home, which felt more like a continuation than a fresh start. At 103 games into the season, the picture is getting harder to ignore.
Jerry Dipoto has said the best players Seattle can acquire are the ones already in the clubhouse, and there’s still some truth to that. Julio Rodríguez could keep building on what he’s shown in the second half.
Cal Raleigh and Josh Naylor may do the same. The three injured relievers could return.
Brendan Donovan, too.
But the club can’t keep leaning on possibility. Not with this many games already in the books. The front office has to see the team for what it is right now: one that needs help.
That means going after the proven reliever. It means finding the right-handed bat.
It probably means adding more than one of each. The Mariners have already left too much to chance, and Wednesday was just the latest proof that the current formula isn’t getting it done.
In Other News...
Mariners May Have Finally Found A Deadline Answer To Their Lefty Problem
Seattles search for a left-handed pitching fix has become one of the more practical questions facing the front office, especially with the lineup still looking for a right-handed bat that can hold up when southpaws are on the mound. The market has been thin enough that even a player who was not the loudest name on the board has started to look like a real fit, particularly given the way he has hit over the past several weeks and the fact that his contract would not force the club into a major financial stretch.
Rob Refsnyders uncertain return only adds to the urgency, because the Mariners cannot keep waiting for a clean internal answer to appear. Another option has been discussed as well, but the broader point is the same: Seattle needs someone who can step in, survive left-on-left matchups and give the roster a little more balance before the deadline passes. [Read more 🡒]
Mariners May Already Be Running Out Of Time With Cole Young
Cole Young has become one of the quiet constants in Seattles season, showing up in all 101 games and giving the Mariners production that has steadily pushed his profile upward. The young middle infielder leads the team in bWAR, has been especially effective with runners in scoring position, and even delivered a key three-run homer in a comeback win, the kind of moment that only adds to the sense that his value is climbing fast.
That is where the bigger question starts to hover over the Mariners. Young is no longer just a promising piece to dream on, he is already performing like someone the organization may need to think seriously about keeping around for the long haul, especially with the market for middle infielders getting more expensive by the year. Seattle has already shown a willingness to make major commitments to core players, and the longer Young keeps stacking up games like this, the harder it gets to imagine the price staying manageable. [Read more 🡒]
Mariners Fans Finally Got Their First Look At A Huge Future Piece
Ace Reese finally gave Mariners fans a first real look at the next wave, signing with the club and taking part in pregame workouts at T-Mobile Park. The third baseman from Mississippi State arrived with the kind of attention that comes with being the top pick, and the organization wasted little time rolling him into the setting where so many future big leaguers first start to feel real.
Reese is now headed to the Mariners spring training facility in Peoria, Arizona, to begin preparing for his first professional season in 2027, and the early introduction only adds to the anticipation around how he fits into the clubs long-term plan. Dan Wilson also pointed to the teams mentoring tradition during Reeses introduction, a reminder that the Mariners are already thinking beyond the signing ceremony and into the handoff from one generation to the next. [Read more 🡒]