The Mariners surprised many with their improvement last season picking up 25 more wins over the season before. There is no reason to believe that they can not contend for top spot in the AL West and a playoff berth this season.
The Mariners added Chone Figgins and Cliff Lee in the off-season. With the Mariners strong defense, Lee should have a sub 3.00 ERA.
The main challenge for the Mariners this season will be finding enough offense. Last season they only had 640 runs and they will need to see some progress from some of their younger players to compete for the division.
Figgins will replace Adrian Beltre’s speed and gives Simpson the Mariners another reliable bat. Mariners backers will be hoping Jose Lopez can build on his 2009 break-out season, but relying on Ken Griffey Jr’s.215 batting average at DH is not the sign of a deep batting rotation.
The Mariners days of being bottom feeders in the division are now over. They should finish in one of the top two spots in the AL West.
Their pitching rotation alone featuring Lee and Felix Hernandez should sweep aside some teams and they are backed by one of the better defenses in Major League Baseball.
Their hitting is what stops them from being a World Series contender. They need some breakout performances in their hitting rotation before they can be considered a serious threat to the elite teams in a seven-game series.
While the other teams in the division stood still or regressed in the off-season, the Mariners took steps to improve and should top last season’s 87 wins.