Drayer: After big series win, can Mariners be what they hoped?

The Seattle Mariners bounced back from a disappointing start to their homestand, which came on the heels of a baseball-life-affirming 5-1 road trip, by handing the current best team in baseball their first series loss of the season – and that should be of absolutely no surprise to anyone who follows the team. It is who they have been and who they currently are.

The big question now: Can the Mariners be who they hoped to be?

There was an unmistakable difference this spring in Peoria in how they carried themselves. You saw and heard the confidence. The World Series being not the goal but rather the expectation in no way sounded or seemed audacious coming from a team that now possesses the experience gained in the previous year. They were carrying themselves like the favorites, a group ready to grab the top spot in the division and take whatever shots were thrown at them throughout the 162 games.

Bryan Woo returns to dominance as Mariners get big series win

Then the season started, and a not so funny but oh so familiar thing happened. Rather than rocketing to the top, the Mariners took the roller coaster once again. Ever since, we have been looking for the series, trip or homestand that would be the springboard to claiming and holding a spot at the top and looking like that team that had huge aspirations and expectations.

Are they going to do this the easy way or the hard way? Will they continue to be who they have been for more than a few years now, a team that takes the season to the absolute edge of cratering before miraculously making a 180 and going on their run? Or will they take that next step, grab the opportunity in front of them with a division that is down this year and spend the majority of the season playing from ahead?

It was good to hear manager Dan Wilson in his postgame comments Wednesday affirm what should be obvious but sometimes gets lost in his steadfast support of his players and their play during these sessions. While admitting the series win over Atlanta was “definitely a confidence builder,” this year should not be about just scraping by.

“It’s not necessarily the other team in the other dugout that we’re concerned about or that we worry about,” Wilson said. “It’s more about what we’re doing and a little bit more consistent baseball in this series. I thought pitching was outstanding, defense was good, and we had some big at-bats and were able to come up with some big hits. But ultimately, it’s about us getting more consistent, especially offensively there in those situations. And we’ve got work to do, but we’re heading in the right direction.”

The consistency has been the problem, and maddeningly so for all involved. There is a wide range of whys for the inconsistency, but the challenges are far from insurmountable and there is opportunity at hand. Brendan Donovan is expected to return from the injured list, and the M’s start three games Friday against the White Sox, who are showing improvement this year but should still be a team the Mariners can take a series from. Then it will be four games against the Astros, who took another blow this week losing Carlos Correa for the season to an ankle injury.

The wins should be there, but more important will be how the Mariners get there. It is consistency they are looking for and consistency they need for the long haul. Will a series against the Atlanta Braves be the springboard that’s gets them off the roller coaster once and for all? We shall see.

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