The key things Dipoto said about Mariners’ offseason plans

Sep 28, 2024, 7:19 PM | Updated: Sep 30, 2024, 3:14 pm

Seattle Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto in 2023. (Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

(Steph Chambers/Getty Images)

Seattle Sports

After breaking their two-decade playoff drought in 2022, the Seattle Mariners will miss the postseason for a second consecutive year.

Rost: Where Mariners’ season ending leaves fans

The Mariners were officially eliminated from playoff contention on Thursday, marking the end of a brutal three-month collapse from holding a 10-game lead atop the American League West on June 18. It will be the third time in four years that Seattle has been eliminated in the final days of the regular season.

During a media availability Saturday prior to the team’s penultimate game of the year, Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto was asked how frustrating it is to fall short once again.

“Incredibly frustrating,” Dipoto said. “… In some ways what we’ve done organizationally, we’ve achieved so much. We’ve put a good team on the field for four consecutive years. We have talked about creating a sustainable roster. We’re just having a tough time figuring out how to climb the wall from a good team to a very good team or a great team. And that’s going to be our challenge this offseason.

“It’s frustrating. I think in many ways I could look at the teams that are in, and we believe we’re as good or better than those teams. And in some ways we performed better than those teams. And if you would have asked me at the start of spring training, ‘You’re going to go 18-8 against the Rangers and the Astros – how many games do you think you’re going to win?’ I probably wouldn’t have said 83, 84 or 85. But that’s where we find ourselves, and we have to find a way over the course of a six-month season to be more consistent than we’ve been.”

Led by a young and ultra-talented starting rotation, the Mariners entered Saturday night leading the majors in ERA. However, their dominant pitching was overshadowed by their struggles at the plate, with their lineup ranking at or near the bottom of the majors in most major offensive statistical categories. The hitting woes ultimately resulted in manager Scott Servais being relieved of his duties on Aug. 22, with former Mariners standout catcher Dan Wilson replacing him.

After Wilson took over and brought Hall of Fame designated hitter Edgar Martinez on board as the team’s interim hitting coach, Seattle’s lineup turned a corner and has been among the best in baseball. Since Aug. 23, the Mariners rank sixth in runs scored.

Dipoto said the recent improvements have reaffirmed his belief in this group of players.

“We’ve played very well for the last five weeks,” Dipoto said. “I think in many ways this gives us some insight into just how good we can be. We’ve seen the offense score in a lot of different ways that maybe we weren’t scoring before, and we’re not reliant on a homer or a walk.

“We’ve always believed in the foundation of this team. Obviously, we need to improve in some areas and we’ll take a look at that as we get into the offseason. … We’ve got some holes that we’ll need to address and areas of improvement. But all in all, I think that the group has shown us again over these last five weeks why we believe in them.”

Here’s a summary of what Dipoto said regarding the club’s offseason plans:

An important lesson

Dipoto said one of the biggest takeaways from this season was the importance of having the right approach at the plate for the team’s notoriously run-suppressing T-Mobile Park.

The Mariners have one of the most fly-ball and pull-heavy lineups in the majors, which isn’t necessarily conducive to success while playing half their games in MLB’s most pitcher-friendly ballpark, according to Statcast’s park factor. When Martinez took over as hitting coach, he preached a more well-rounded approach of using the whole field, which seemed to make a significant impact over the past five weeks.

“We learned where we may be doing things the wrong way and we have to make adjustments,” Dipoto said. “Not just an approach on the field, but in how we put the roster together and maybe in some of the things we’re looking for and in how those things fit in our ballpark – maybe that’s been the greatest lesson for us this year. Hopefully, we’re able to adapt the lessons we’ve learned to building the ’25 team.

“But like I said, I think most of that is already on the field. And right now we’re seeing how simple messaging can really pull out the best of what our players have to offer. We have a good team. And I hate that we’re going to go home tomorrow, but it is encouraging what we’re seeing over these last five weeks.”

Seattle averaged 4.6 runs per game on the road this season, but just 3.7 runs per game at home.

“We’ve been a good run-scoring offense on the road,” Dipoto said. “I think we can be a good run-scoring offense both at home and on the road with a more balanced approach. … The team has shown that they are capable of doing this – that we don’t need to to go out and revamp our roster. There’s a reason we’ve had a good team for a handful of years now, and it’s because our players are good.

“Now we just have to continue to help them evolve their game in a way that suits our ballpark that we can really magnify the results.”

M’s don’t plan to trade starting pitching

Many have floated the idea of Seattle trading away one of its young arms to bolster its lineup. However, Dipoto said the organization would like to avoid that.

“On the continuum of A to Z, that would be ‘Plan Z’ times some denominator,” Dipoto said. “… We could shoot ourselves in the foot by trying to get too crafty in what we do. Our pitching is how we’re built. I love our rotation. I think we have the potential for a dynamic back end of our bullpen. So yeah, that wouldn’t be ‘Plan A.’ But we’ll go into every offseason open to whatever ideas might make us better.”

The team’s biggest needs

The Mariners already have one of the best pitching staffs in baseball and they should get a boost next year with the return of high-leverage relievers Matt Brash and Gregory Santos, who combined to pitch just a handful of innings this season due to injuries.

Dipoto also said the outfield core is set with Julio Rodríguez, Randy Arozarena, Victor Robles and Luke Raley. And of course, catcher Cal Raleigh is a franchise cornerstone behind the plate.

That leaves the infield as the biggest area of need. Veteran shortstop J.P. Crawford, who is under contract through 2026, appears to be the only sure thing there. The Mariners need to decide whether to pick up second baseman Jorge Polanco’s $12 million club option next season. They also are sure to explore upgrades at first base and third base.

“The outfield, we feel like that’s pretty set moving forward,” Dipoto said. “We’re in a great place behind the plate. Our pitching staff from one through 13 is pretty solid, if you consider the returns of Santos and Brash. We do need to take a look at some spots on our infield. First base is a spot that is going to raise its head, and the infield in general has been an area where we’re piercing it together.

“But again, you have good pieces. We will get a better version of J.P. next year. Hasn’t had his greatest year, but he’s shown us over time how good he can be. … And I do believe there are players in our (farm) system who can contribute more.”

The significance of veteran leadership

Dipoto said another lesson from this season was the importance of veteran leadership. That was evident from the widespread impact 39-year-old slugger Justin Turner had after the club acquired him at the trade deadline. Dipoto said Turner’s clubhouse presence and ability to share hitting expertise was similar to the positive impact the 2022 Mariners got from Carlos Santana, who was a trade-deadline addition that summer.

“Every soup tastes a little bit different based on the number of ingredients you put in,” Dipoto said. “And sometimes, if I’m putting in the wrong ingredient, the soup’s not gonna taste great. And we’ve experienced that. I haven’t always picked the right guys to add to the mix.

“This time, I think this group is the right mix. I wish we could go start again and play with this group for six months. The season won’t let us do that. But I’ve really appreciated getting to see what the real veteran leadership does for this team, and we’ve seen it now on two occasions and it’s been really pronounced on how much it’s helped our players.”

The payroll situation

The Mariners’ payroll situation was a major topic of conversation last offseason, but Dipoto said he doesn’t expect it to be a concern this time around.

“I don’t think we’re going down (in payroll),” Dipoto said. “And at the end of the day, the league around us is going to behave the way that they behave. Last year, we had a pretty good feeling that there were a number of teams that were in a unique situation due to the (regional sports network TV) issues.

“I don’t know how that’s going to play out this season or what it’s going to mean for other teams in the league. The only thing I do know going into this season is how it’s going to play out for us, and it’s not going to be nearly the concern that it was this past year.”