Seattle Mariners: Protecting Jarred Kelenic
Recently Jarred Kelenic has seen the bench a bit more frequently. A surprising move for the youngster. Is it something to be concerned about?
The Seattle Mariners are off to a nice start. Their pitching has been very good, ranking as one of the best in the MLB. On the other side, the Mariners’ offense also ranks as one of the highest-scoring in the league. Before Monday’s games, the M’s were second in the AL in run differential. They are, of course, leaps and bounds, two football fields and a country mile ahead of everyone else in Fun differential.
After 22 games, there are only three regulars who are batting below the Mendoza line. If Jesse Winker continues his current hot streak, his average will be over .200 in the next few days, if not sooner. That leaves Abraham Toro and Jarred Kelenic under a .200 batting average.
Kelenic is again struggling to hit at the Major League level. However, recently he’s been sitting with more frequency. Is this because the Seattle Mariners are losing their belief in him and think he may be more of a Joc Pederson platoon guy as opposed to an everyday player?
There are more right-handed pitchers than lefties, but Pederson sits against lefties just as Kelenic is starting to do more. Thus Pederson doesn’t play every single day, just most of them.
Or is this a way of the Seattle Mariners trying to build and maintain Kelenic’s confidence at the plate?
Since Kelenic is struggling to hit, the thinking might be for him to face more righties so he can have some success and build his confidence. Once he’s hitting better and more consistently, he can have more chances against lefties. Keep in mind not every highly touted prospect succeeds at the MLB level.
Jarred Kelenic hit the baseball. pic.twitter.com/MQPP41uGzQ
— Gravel (@Gravel_sense) April 30, 2022