Seattle Mariners: What to do with Jose Marmolejos in 2021
Jose Marmolejos turned heads when he made the Seattle Mariners 2020 Opening Day roster after 11 years in the minors. Is there still a place for him on the M’s in 2021?
Prior to last season, Jose Marmolejos was a minor league lifer. He spent 11 years working his way to the show. In that time, Marmolejos accumulated 443 runs, 883 hits, 72 home runs, and 469 runs batted with a .288 batting average. More impressive is that at each stop on his long climb he was able to hold his own. So, his inclusion on the Seattle Mariners‘ opening day roster wasn’t a total shock to those in the business. I was shocked. I thought Fraley’s prior big-league experience would serve him well and he’d be another piece to building a championship team.
Marmolejos rewarded manager Scott Servais for his shot at the Major Leagues by going hitless in his first game. His first month in the bigs got off a very poor start: .143 avg, 1 run, 3 hits, 1 HR, and 3 RBI with 7 K’s to 0 BB’s. Not a promising start to his career. Only nine games into 2020, the M’s felt it best that Marmolejos regain some confidence by facing some “minor league” pitching. Granted the Mariners weren’t expected to compete but this lack of production still warranted a demotion.
His time at the M’s alternate training site did the trick for Jose. When Marmolejos returned to Seattle, he started an eight-game hit streak. During this streak, he launched three homers and drove in eight runs. This is what Servais and GM Jerry Dipoto were expecting from Jose. One day after his hit streak broke. Marmolejos put together a six-game hit streak. His batting average rose to a nice .266.
Toward the end of 2020, Marmolejos slumped again. Over the final 12 games, he only managed one hit, sinking his average to .206 for the year.