MLB predicted the Mariners playoff chances at over 80% in late June when Seattle held the fourth-best record in baseball at 54-31. They trailed the defending World Champion Houston Astros by just 0.5 games. Fans weren’t discussing if the Mariners would finally reach the postseason, but whether or not they could win the division. Teams like Oakland and Tampa Bay were no longer in the playoff conversation.
Then, Oakland played an impressive stretch of baseball in July. Surely, playing .700 ball couldn’t sustain for the entire season.
And then it did.
To make it worse, the Mariners played roughly .