Shut your eyes and journey again in time with me—manner again to the 12 months 2018. Bryce Harper was a Nationwide, the Rockies made the playoffs, and the Orioles had been … nonetheless horrible. However a humorous factor occurred in the Pacific Northwest that season: the Mariners, regardless of being outscored on the 12 months by 34 runs, gained 89 video games and hung across the playoff race for much longer than most anticipated them to (sound acquainted?).
Moderately than construct on that shock success in 2019, the crew adopted it up by dropping 94 video games, then completed beneath .500 once more in 2020. After surprising many with a 90-win, minus-51 run season in 2021, Seattle now seems intent on staying in the sport’s higher tier.
The Mariners took a substantial step towards ending the franchise’s two-decade postseason drought on Monday, agreeing to a five-year, $115 million cope with reigning American League Cy Younger Award winner Robbie Ray. The transfer alerts a entrance workplace deciding fairly emphatically that the rebuilding part is prepared to give manner to rivalry and, if issues go by design, significant video games in October.
Kevin Sousa/USA TODAY Sports activities
Earlier than breaking out final season, Ray slogged his manner via an erratic 2020. He walked a staggering 17.9% of batters throughout 51⅔ innings, averaging almost eight walks per 9 frames. Ray had been an actual “Three True Outcomes” darling prior to 2021, racking up strikeouts, walks and residential runs allowed at a better clip than most every other starter.
However all the pieces clicked for the left-hander final 12 months. After re-signing with Toronto on a one-year, $8 million contract, Ray almost lower his free passes in half, posting a 6.7% stroll charge after a profession mark of 11% heading into the season.
Whereas harnessing his management, Ray didn’t lose grip on his skill to miss bats. Ray struck out 32.1% of hitters he confronted in 2021, simply shy of his profession excessive. No pitcher in baseball historical past has struck out extra batters in his first 1,000 profession innings than Ray, and although he nonetheless gave up his justifiable share of residence runs (1.54 HR/9 in 2021), his command of the strike zone has considerably raised his ground and made him among the many most tough pitchers to deal with in the league.
So how did Ray get so significantly better seemingly in a single day? For one, he relied extra closely on his fastball to a lot improved outcomes. Opposing hitters batted .292 with a .682 slugging share towards Ray’s four-seam fastball in 2020, maybe because of the left-hander’s substandard command, which enabled them to hunt heaters at will. Within the earlier 4 seasons mixed, opponents hit .215 with a .371 slugging share towards the pitch, whereas Ray posted a 4.04 ERA throughout 117 begins.
Ray rediscovered his command final 12 months and leaned on the four-seamer, throwing it almost 60% of the time and holding hitters to a .222 batting common towards it. He all however scrapped his curveball and have become roughly a two-pitch pitcher, going with the slider at a 30.8% clip. Maybe one other adjustment is required and Ray could have to discover a third pitch that he trusts, however the outcomes had been there with this present strategy.
As talked about above, the Mariners thrived final season regardless of being outscored in the mixture by 51 runs. By comparability, the Tigers (minus-59) went 77–85 final 12 months and the Rockies (minus-57) went 74–87. Seattle’s rotation ranked nineteenth in ERA (4.61) and twenty second in fWAR (7.3), whereas its offense was twenty sixth in fWAR (11.5) and twenty eighth in on-base share (.303). This isn’t an try to dismiss the crew’s success from a season in the past—quite the opposite, it’s remarkably spectacular that the Mariners even sniffed the playoffs—however this isn’t a roster that exudes postseason potential, even with a bullpen that was excellent down the stretch in shut video games.
Ray’s arrival actually doesn’t change all that, but when his changes final 12 months are right here to keep, he offers Seattle a bonafide ace that each playoff crew craves. Ray led the AL with 193⅓ innings final season, and his skill to pitch deep into video games can be vital for a crew that may want to change one of many few confirmed starters it had final season in Yusei Kikuchi, who’s presently a free agent. Different starters presently in the fold are Chris Flexen, Logan Gilbert and Marco Gonzales.
The AL West is presently shaping up to be fairly an arms race, and the Mariners nonetheless have strides to make to be thought of among the many prime of the heap. Touchdown Ray is only one step, but it surely’s a significant one. Seattle won’t be a playoff crew simply but, however with Ray in the fold and a farm system brimming with expertise that’s prepared to make an impression on the big-league degree, the sunshine on the finish of the tunnel is drawing ever nearer.
Extra MLB Protection:
