When I spoke on the mixed bag that the 2023 Seattle Mariners have rooted around inside recently on the Meet at the Mitt podcast, I compared them to the 2016 club, both with fondness and frustration. A flawed team, burdened with expectations beyond their capability barring truly extraordinary circumstances, seemingly upturned like an ill-treated goldfish only to jolt back to life with a flip of their fins again and again. The 2016 team’s Achilles heel was their pitching staff, which has not been this club’s issue, but their fate lived and died by three true stars at the dish: Robinson Canó, Nelson Cruz, and Kyle Seager.
The Mariners rediscover their better angel
