The New Seattle Mariners – “Sea Us Rise”
The Seattle Mariners haven’t been a winning team or desirable destination for free agents over the past few seasons. All that is about to change.
The Seattle Mariners have not been a winning team or desirable destination for free agents over the past few seasons. That is until this past offseason when the team was able to land the reigning AL Cy Young winner, Robbie Ray. He signed a 5-year $155M deal with the M’s.
The team is about to produce their second Rookie of the Year in the last three seasons, Julio Rodriguez. The kid has been absolutely amazing this season. They are exceeding everyone’s expectations of him while being fun to watch.
So, naturally, the Seattle Mariners gave him a mega-extension of 12 years for $209.3M. There are some layers to this deal, it could ultimately be worth $470M, and that previously mentioned $209.3M is guaranteed.
J-Rod was one of two Seattle Mariners All-Stars this season. He participated in this season’s Home Run Derby contest and finished second to Juan Soto.
If the Ray saying got everyone’s attention. Then the Rodriguez deal put Seattle back in the spotlight. This is a really special time, and no one should take this team lightly. It’s special for an organization to get two generational and global household names.
Changing the narrative of the Seattle Mariners
Now it’s being reported that ace pitcher Luis Castillo might be signing an extension with the Seattle Mariners, per Jeff Passan on the Mike Salk show.
“An extension for Luis Castillo probably looks pretty similar to the deal Robbie Ray got from the Mariners in free agency last offseason, which was 5 years, $115 mill with an opt-out after Year 3.”
Wow! This would be huge! The Seattle Mariners would have a legit bonafide ace in their rotation for the first time since Felix Hernandez was pitching in the Emerald City. Their five-man rotation would be one of the absolute best. Castillo, Ray, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, and Marco Gonzales. Plus one of the best bullpens in the MLB. The Mariners are indeed rising.
This AM with @TheMikeSalk, ESPN's @JeffPassan said an extension for Luis Castillo probably looks pretty similar to the deal Robbie Ray got from the Mariners in free agency last offseason, which was 5 years, $115 mill with an opt out after Year 3.
— Brandon Gustafson (@TheBGustafson) August 31, 2022
They can have their cake and eat it too
The Seattle Mariners’ farm system is still in good shape, even though some potentially impactful talent was sent to Cincinnati this year. They also have some important players locked up on good deals.
J.P. Crawford, Ty France, Eugenio Suarez, Paul Sewald, and Andres Munoz are all locked in until at least 2025. Seattle still has some youngsters who will need to be extended, catcher Cal Raleigh and the aforementioned Gilbert and Kirby.
There are also some big-name players who were expected to be helpful and producing this season. If Jarred Kelenic and Kyle Lewis. can get straightened out, this is a dangerous offensive club.
Final Thoughts
The Seattle Mariners are on course to break their 20-year playoff drought. They’ll also be hosting the 2023 All-Star game. And the beauty of it all is they’re just getting started. #SeaUsRise
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