State of the Mariners – April 25th, 2025
A quick look into who’s hot, who’s not, and trends to monitor
By Brittany Wisner, edited by Charles Hamaker
Seattle, WA - In keeping with patterns of seasons’ past, the beginning of the 2025 season looked to be another “cold start” for Seattle’s Major League Baseball team.
Our Seattle Mariners stumbled out of the gate, posting a 3-7 record over their first ten games and suffering a sweep in just their third series – a distinct contrast from the 2024 squad who wasn’t swept until late July. The offense struggled, confirming many preseason concerns as they produced a .674 OPS and a league-worst .132 batting-average with runners in scoring position.
While the challenges with the bats were somewhat expected, the struggles of the pitching staff came as a surprise. In the first ten games, the starting rotation posted a combined 5.15 ERA.
However, the familiar cries of “same old Mariners!” wouldn’t fill the social media comments for too long.
Since those first ten games, Seattle has won five consecutive series and eleven of their last 15 games. They have produced a team OPS of .745 over those 15 games, and their 126 wRC+ ranks second highest in the league. The starting rotation, while still not quite performing to the high standard fans have come to expect, has combined for a modest 3.52 ERA during that stretch.
Sitting at 14-11 and in first place in the American League West, let’s recap who’s been hot–and who’s been cold–through the first 25 games of the 2025 season in the first edition of “State of the Mariners” this year.
Who’s Hot
Seattle Mariners infielder/designated hitter Jorge Polanco during the teams Friday, April 11th, 2025 victory over the Texas Rangers at T-Mobile Park. (Photos by Rio Giancarlo for Circling Seattle Sports)
Jorge Polanco
Yes, you read that correctly.
After an abysmal 2024 in which Polanco produced career lows in nearly every offensive category, 2025 Jorge Polanco has been the complete antithesis thus far. Through 16 games, “Polo” has been the Mariners’ best hitter, leading the team in batting average (.351), slugging percentage (.596), OPS (.963) and wRC+ (184). His wRC+ tied Fernando Tatis for the tenth highest in baseball amongst players with at least 60 plate appearances. His strikeout rate sits at a team-low 13.1%, an early improvement from the 29.2% he posted in 2024.
Polanco has perhaps inarguably been the most pleasant surprise of the early season. Unfortunately, injury has once again limited his participation, though not to the degree that his knee did in 2024. A minor oblique strain suffered just a few weeks into the season has prevented him from being able to swing right-handed, as well as play the field much. This has shifted Polanco into a primary DH role and landed him on the bench against left-handed pitchers. Regardless, the Mariners will gladly take his contributions if they are able to continue at a steady rate.
Seattle Mariners infielder/outfielder Dylan Moore during the teams Monday, April 7th, 2025 victory over the Houston Astros at T-Mobile Park. (Photos by Rio Giancarlo for Circling Seattle Sports)
Dylan Moore
Earning AL Player of the Week honors for April 14-20, Dylan Moore has done it all for Seattle so far in 2025. The first Mariner to earn weekly honors since Julio Rodríguez last September, Moore is slashing .288/.351/.530 for a .882 OPS and 161 wRC+.
With the loss of Victor Robles, Moore has taken over in the leadoff spot in matchups against left-handed starters. In his five games being deployed at the top of the order, he has hit .286 with three home runs–two of those which were leadoff homers to start the game.
The gold glove utility player has also done what he does best, already recording appearances at third base, shortstop, second base, first base and right field in just 22 games.
The value provided by the Mariners’ longest-tenured player cannot be overstated. His versatility and consistent production gives Seattle a degree of flexibility that not all teams are fortunate enough to have. Whether filling in for an injured player, giving a starter the night off or accommodating late-game positional shifts, Moore is the duct tape that frequently holds it all together.
Seattle Mariners reliever Gabe Speier during the teams Friday, April 11th, 2025 victory over the Texas Rangers at T-Mobile Park. (Photos by Rio Giancarlo for Circling Seattle Sports)
Gabe Speier
Welcome back, Gabe Speier.
After a breakout season in 2023, Speier’s 2024 campaign was riddled with injuries, leaving him struggling with control and experiencing a downtick in pitch velocity.
So far this season, Speier has more closely resembled that of his breakout season. He has given up just one run, five hits, walked two and struck out 13 in 10.2 innings pitched. His 4-seam fastball velocity is up to 95.5 mph (from 93 mph last year) and his sinker is up to 94.8 mph (from 92.8 mph last year), per Baseball Savant. His .167 xBA* ranks in the top 5% of MLB while his 2.06 xERA* ranks in the top 7%.
*expected stats like xERA and xBA model what a player’s stat would be based on the underlying characteristics of the balls put in play; such as launch angle and exit velocity. While helpful in analyzing a player’s performance, expected stats are not designed to be predictive
Source: Baseball Savant
A needed lefty presence in a right-handed heavy bullpen that missed him mightily last year, Gabe Speier’s return has been an extremely welcome sight.
Who’s Not So Hot
Donovan Solano
It’s hard to imagine a player having a worse start to a season than Solano is having.
In fact, by wRC+, he has been the worst hitter in Major League Baseball amongst players with at least 30 plate appearances. He has just three hits in 38 at bats with 13 strikeouts, one walk and one RBI. His .100 on-base percentage is currently the worst in baseball (min 30 PA).
Brought on to be the right-handed platoon at first base (and, initially, possibly even third base), Seattle would likely be better served sticking with their left-handed options at this point, a telling sign of Solano’s struggles when considering that the lefty options of Rowdy Tellez and Luke Raley are currently batting .163 and .172, respectively.
Barring an immediate and sharp turnaround, it’s fair to assume the Mariners will soon choose to part ways with the 37-year-old vet. Seattle’s internal options to replace him include Tyler Locklear and Austin Shenton, with Locklear the more likely of the two. In 94 plate appearances in triple-A Tacoma, Locklear is slashing .305/.394/.463 with a 25.5% strikeout rate.
Seattle Mariners first baseman Rowdy Tellez during the teams Friday, April 11th, 2025 victory over the Texas Rangers at T-Mobile Park. (Photos by Rio Giancarlo for Circling Seattle Sports)
Rowdy Tellez
Speaking of first basemen off to a poor start, Rowdy Tellez has cooled off significantly since leaving the friendly confines of Peoria Sports Complex.
In his 53 plate appearances to start the year, Tellez is batting .163 with a 32.1% strikeout rate. His 83 wRC+ is second worst on the team behind Solano.
Keeping his stats somewhat afloat is his slugging percentage: he has four home runs (tied for third most on the team) and 11 RBI (fourth most on the team). It’s worth noting that three of those home runs came in Toronto and one of those was a grand slam, the Blue Jays series effectively doing most of the heavy lifting for Tellez’s numbers so far.
The Mariners simply need more out of Tellez, especially if they want to continue to utilize Luke Raley in right field.
The Starting Rotation
No, you’re not reading incorrectly. Seattle’s most valuable asset and the foundation on which they have built their team has been aggressively mediocre to start the 2025 season.
Through 25 games, Mariner starters have combined for a 4.15 ERA (which ranks 20th in baseball), 1.33 WHIP (20th) and a .245 batting average against (22nd).
Perhaps the starkest contrast however has been their lack of quality starts. Seattle’s rotation, who led the league by a wide margin in both quality starts and number of innings pitched in 2024, has just seven quality starts so far in 2025. Four of those quality starts belong to Bryan Woo alone. Logan Gilbert, Luis Castillo and Emerson Hancock have all recorded just one quality start each and Bryce Miller has yet to record one this year.
The irony is that, unlike in years past, the offense has effectively picked up the pitching staff more often than not. It’s an unfamiliar dynamic and, while a refreshing change, one they shouldn’t necessarily rely on to continue. The Mariners’ front office has built this team around the starting rotation, with a formula heavily reliant on receiving at least six low-scoring innings from the starter, subsequently requiring minimal work from the bullpen and just enough run support to push them across the finish line. In order for the machine to operate as designed, Seattle will need to receive more quality innings out of whoever is on the mound that day. Without it, an already thin bullpen will continue to be taxed and the limits of what the Mariners bats are capable of may be tested.
Seattle will also hope to get George Kirby back soon. Although no timetable has been provided, General Manager Justin Hollander has stated that Kirby has checked every box so far in his rehab. Kirby began the year on the Injured List with right shoulder inflammation and his hole in the starting rotation has certainly been felt.
Monitoring
As the season is young and sample sizes are small, there are a few trends just worth monitoring at this point.
Seattle Mariners centerfielder Julio Rodríguez during the teams March 31st, 2025 home loss to the Detroit Tigers at T-Mobile Park. (Photos by Eric Hiller for Circling Seattle Sports)
Julio Rodríguez
We have seen both encouraging and discouraging signs from the face of Seattle’s franchise so far this season.
Rodríguez is batting .202 with a .677 OPS in his first 116 plate appearances of the year, a far cry from what the 24-year-old is known to be capable of. Rodríguez has historically been a slow starter, a frustrating trend but one that he has typically made up for in the summer months.
One thing that has been noticeably positive for Julio is the number of walks he is taking. He is currently running an 11.8% walk rate, a notable increase from his career walk rate of 6.6%.
Conversely, his strikeout rate is still relatively high at 24.3%. His overall swing rate continues to increase year-to-year while his contact rate has decreased.
Accordingly, the frequency at which Rodríguez has swung and missed so far this year is up to 18.7% from 15.5% in 2024. This has been part of Julio’s achilles heel in his big league career and something to keep an eye on as the season progresses.
Miles Mastrobuoni
A hitter who came to Seattle with nearly zero track record of success, Miles Mastrobuoni has raised a few eyebrows in his first month with the Mariners.
With a career .554 OPS and only 119 big league games under his belt, the 29-year-old utility player is batting .258 with a 107 wRC+ in 39 plate appearances. Mastrobuoni leads the team in both hard hit rate (59.3%) and contact rate (85.5%) per Fangraphs, both of which are career highs for him.
While it’s too early to draw any conclusions, these metrics are better than one likely would have expected given Mastrobuoni’s career thus far and are worth keeping an eye on moving forward.
What’s Next?
Seattle begins a short five-game homestand Friday, April 25th as the Miami Marlins come to town. The Marlins have a record of 11-13 on the year.
The Los Angeles Angels come to T-Mobile Park on Tuesday, April 29th for just a two-game series. This will be Seattle’s first look at their divisional foe who has started the season with a record of 12-12.
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Check out our previous Seattle Mariners articles here.
Check out our previous articles with writing by Brittany Wisner here.
Check out our previous articles with photos by Rio Giancarlo here, and his portfolio here.
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