MLB Network’s Jon Morosi: Mariners’ Domingo Santana could potentially be a younger Nelson Cruz

The Mariners traded Ben Gamel and a pitching prospect to the Milwaukee Brewers for Domingo Santana on December 21. Only 12 games into his first season with Seattle, Santana has 19 RBIs.

Yeah, the early returns on that move are pretty good.

Morosi: Something red-hot M’s might have in common with 2001 team

Though Santana’s arrival in Seattle was somewhat under the radar in an offseason that saw Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto send stars Robinson Canó, Edwin Díaz, James Paxton and Jean Segura to the East Coast, he’s quickly becoming one of the Mariners’ most visible players during their franchise-best start to the 2019 season.

Jon Morosi, reporter for the MLB Network and FOX Sports, told 710 ESPN Seattle’s Brock and Salk that if Santana keeps up what he’s been doing, the Mariners may have a new version of a team legend on their hands.

“It means that they’ve got someone who can replace Nelson Cruz,” Morosi said when Mike Salk asked him what it would mean if Santana sustains his strong start to his Mariners career. “If he keeps up this clip, and it’s certainly within the realm of possibility, he’s already a fifth of the way to 100 RBIs and it’s April 9. Think about that – 19 RBIs on April 9.”

Big 2-out hit for Domingo Santana to drive in a pair of runs for @Mariners Join us for the finish on @ROOTSPORTS_NW in KC. #WHEREiROOT pic.twitter.com/uANWcddXDv

— ROOT SPORTS™ | NW (@ROOTSPORTS_NW) April 9, 2019

That’s a pretty big name for Morosi to compare Santana to, but he made a strong explanation for why. At 26 years old, Santana already has a 30-homer season under his belt (2017 with the Brewers), and coming off a 2018 campaign where he struggled in a reserve role in Milwaukee’s crowded outfield and ended up having to get playing time in Triple-A, he fits the bill of a late bloomer, which Cruz was.

Cruz also had some stops and starts early on in his MLB career, then blossomed in his late 20s when the Texas Rangers gave him the playing time he needed to flourish. Santana, along with a few other players on the current Mariners roster, is getting a similar shot to show what he can do with regular playing time.

“I think power-wise, to me 30 homers is very possible,” Morosi said of Santana. “He’s done that before; he did that two years ago when he played 151 games and now he’s got a chance to play even more games. I think for him, the sky’s the limit in terms of his bat-to-ball skills. And one of the key things that I think the Mariners were able to do for Santana, for certainly (Tim) Beckham, even to some degree (Ryon) Healy, (is) to say hey, you can play ever more than you’ve played in the past.

“It’s opportunity. It’s saying you’re gonna have 150 games… Just play. We’re not gonna be pushing and pulling you in and out of the lineup. Just play. And sometimes that opportunity is all that certain players need to really take off, and I think for Santana that’s exactly what the story’s been so far. I look at him as – potentially – a younger version of Nelson Cruz, which is saying a lot.”

To hear the full 15-minute conversation with Morosi from Brock and Salk, listen in the player embedded in this post or download a podcast version at this link.

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