Seattle Mariners 2020 Review/2021 Preview – Starting Pitching
Taijuan Walker, Seattle Mariners
The Ace
Marco Gonzales leads the rotation as the Seattle Mariners ace. He pitched like an ace in 2020. In 11 starts, Gonzales had a record of 7–2 (2nd in American League), with a 3.10 ERA (8th) and 0.95 WHIP (3rd). His control was excellent all season. Gonzales yielded only seven walks in 69.2 innings pitched without no more than one base on balls in a game. The former Gonzaga Bulldogs standout led the league in two categories, 0.90 walks per nine innings, and 9.14 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
The highlight of Gonzales’ season was a 102-pitch complete game against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim on August 31. He limited the Halos to five base runners (four hits, one walk). To make the victory even sweeter, Angels slugger Mike Trout went 0–4 with three strikeouts. It’s hard to do much better than that except a no-hitter.
Not only did Gonzales lead the pitchers, but he also finished second on the team with a 1.5 Wins Above Replacement (WAR). Unless the M’s sign someone else, Gonzales will be at the top of Seattle’s rotation next season.
The Unexpected Surprise
Seattle welcomed back former first-round draft pick (2010) Taijuan Walker to the team. After two years of injury rehab after Tommy John surgery, Arizona decided to let him go in the offseason. M’s General Manager Jerry DiPoto signed Walker as a free agent in February hoping that he would bounce back.
Bounce back indeed. In five starts with Seattle, he was 2–2 with a 4.00 ERA. DiPoto converted his bargain signing into outfield prospect Alberto Rodriguez in a pre-deadline trade with Toronto.
It was originally thought that the Mariners would try to sign Walker in free agency, again this offseason. Those chances seem less likely now. In six starts for the Jays, he allowed only four earned runs with an ERA of 1.37. Walker’s price went way up.