SEATTLE -- When general manager Jerry Dipoto took over the Mariners two years ago, his immediate goal was to help the club get younger and more athletic while building up the foundation of players around the "core four" of Robinson Cano, Nelson Cruz, Kyle Seager and Felix Hernandez.
That vision hasn't changed, but merely sharpened, even while the club has undergone nearly a complete makeover with just seven players on the current 40-man roster remaining from the group Dipoto inherited at the end of the 2015 season.
Dipoto continued his quest to become more athletic this winter, adding speedster Dee Gordon, who has led the Major Leagues in stolen bases three of the last four years.