Morosi: Mariners a team that ‘needed’ All-Star break

The Seattle Mariners were already having a disappointing first half of their season, and it became even more so after a rough final road trip before the All-Star break.

What college coach saw from Seattle Mariners’ 1st-round pick Ace Reese

Seattle dropped five of its final six game before the break. The 1-5 slide on the two-city trip dropped its record to 48-49 on the season, resulting in falling to 1 1/2 games back of the Texas Rangers for first place in the American League West.

MLB Network insider on Jon Morosi shared his thoughts on the Mariners heading into the second half during a conversation with Wyman and Bob on Tuesday.

“This has been a team that has limped to the All-Star break. This is the team that needed and still needs the All-Star break. Let’s hope that Julio (Rodríguez) is back and healthy and ready to go by this weekend,” Morosi said. “But it’s a team that with all the talk about the piggyback, the Matt Brash injury, the Julio injury, the (Cal) Raleigh inconsistency, (Josh) Naylor being inconsistent, this is a team that we have not seen the best of yet.”

Morosi hasn’t lost his faith in the Mariners yet, but it’s a hit a point where the team has to prove itself by starting to play up to its potential.

“I’m still a believer in this team,” Morosi said. “I do not believe the Rangers are a better team than the Mariners. I believe that, ultimately, the second half is going to prove that about this Seattle Mariner ballclub. But again, eventually, they’ve got to show it at T-Mobile (Park) consistently at 7 p.m. Pacific Time in the second half. And that’s gonna have to start this weekend.”

Injury issues

When discussing Seattle’s underwhelming first half, Morosi couldn’t ignore how hard the club has been hit by injuries.

Raleigh had his first stint on the injured list as a big leaguer and missed a month earlier in the season. Prized offseason trade acquisition Brendan Donovan has been out since mid-May with a nagging groin injury. Rodríguez missed the final week before the All-Star break with a concussion. And high-leverage arm Matt Brash is expected to be out until at least August with a right lat strain that landed him on the IL in early June.

Additionally, starting pitcher Bryce Miller, All-Star left fielder Randy Arozarena and shortstop/third baseman J.P. Crawford all spent time on the IL earlier this season.

“They have a roster that should be able to stay healthy and they have not had a fully healthy team at any point this year. That’s what I see with this group,” Morosi said. “This is a team coming off of the ALCS last year with a durable Raleigh and a durable Naylor and what has been to this point a durable Donovan and a pretty durable Julio. They’ve all been hurt at different times. That’s not supposed to happen.”

“Inconsistent, injured, unfulfilled first half. They should be better,” Morosi added. “And if I’m going to be honest, I believe in their chance to turn it around. There’s still a future for this team and I think it’s a positive one. But man, they have taken their sweet time in in getting into the good run of form that we can actually dream on with the Seattle Mariners in the second half.”

Hear the full conversation at this link or in the audio player in this story. Listen to Wyman and Bob weekdays from 2-7 p.m. on Seattle Sports 710 AM and the Seattle Sports app. 

Seattle Mariners news and more

• How Mariners’ top pitching prospects fared in All-Star Futures Game
• 3 things we learned about Seattle Mariners 1st-round pick Ace Reese
• Mariners RHP Hancock exits after taking comebacker off his hand

Related

Mariners’ Lazaro Montes blasts 1st HR in MLB debutWatch Mariners’ Lazaro Montes learn of promotion to MLBMariners Lineup: Lazaro Montes ‘ready to go’ in MLB debutMLB’s Los Angeles Angels to be sold to Rams owner Stan KroenkeThe Mariners have not bounced back from 6 big injuriesMariners sign veteran LHP, add Lazaro Montes for September call-ups