Drayer: Mariners give a different first impression this spring

Greetings from Peoria, where the Seattle Mariners are going about the business of getting ready for the upcoming season. Business as usual, correct? Well, it doesn’t quite feel that way, nor should it.

Salk: Mariners doing one more thing besides ‘draft, develop and trade’

The Mariners coming off of a season where they were eight outs from the World Series is hardly usual, and as such, I have been curious to know what the first glimpse of this version of the team would reveal. And I was a bit surprised by what that first impression was.

It was like I was watching a different team. Maybe after last year, that’s what it should be like as we don’t have much experience watching a true World Series contender. That was the feel.

While there is excitement for a number of young players we could see this year, there is little uncertainty to what they will break camp with both in terms of names and the experience they have. Not having question marks sets a very different foundation for the start of a new campaign – and make no mistake, it is a new campaign, not Part II of what was started last year. Manager Dan Wilson is not looking for a “chip on the shoulder” attitude; there’s a “business from last year to be finished” focus from this group.

While Wilson admits the sting of the Game 7 loss in Toronto is hard if not impossible to put away, he sees a better, more constructive focus available to the team.

“We’ve got everything in front of us now,” he said. “It’s a new season. I think one of the things our guys did very well last year is just being in the present moment. And right now, it’s about preparing for what’s ahead of us going forward. That’s the approach we’re taking. And I think in some ways that sting does provide some motivation. But I think with all of us, it just doesn’t do any good to dwell on. It’s time to keep pushing for what’s ahead.”

That push ahead in spring training will face a bit of a hurdle as it won’t be done together as a full team. At least eight players from the expected opening day roster will be leaving at the end of the month to play in the World Baseball Classic. At a minimum, those players will be out until March 12. Should any of their teams advance to the final, they will not return until March 18, when there will be just six spring training games left to be played. Not quite a show-and-go into the regular season, but close. It should provide for an interesting final week of the spring.

Notes

• The Mariners open Cactus League play Friday, with Dane Dunning scheduled to start on the mound. Mariners Radio Network coverage starts at noon on Seattle Sports.

See the Seattle Mariners’ spring training TV and radio schedules

• The Mariners have officially announced the signing of catcher Mitch Garver to a minor league contract. He will be in camp Friday.

More on the Seattle Mariners

• Why Mariners’ offense can withstand having less power in ’26
• Mariners’ Josh Naylor wasn’t joking about dog’s role in him re-signing
• Seattle Mariners have an approach to spring training with WBC looming
• Mariners acquire LHP Josh Simpson from Miami Marlins
• Amid hype, Seattle Mariners’ Kade Anderson aims to ‘live in the moment’

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