2017 All Star Break: How We Got Here

Alright, so we’re four games under .500 as we head into the All Star Break in this 2017 season. The Ners have had moments of promising brilliance – moments that have then been brought to a sobering reality by stretches of utter incompetence.

Yet before we look into whether or not we should buy or sell at the upcoming deadline (click here), let's take a second to reflect on the season up to this point and identify some of the best, worst, and most surprising moments/players thus far. The MM staff shares their opinions on the following categories:

Favorite Moments Thus Far

Mike Zunino’s walk-off home run (June 7)

This was the absolute feel good moment of the season up to this point, no doubt about it. It was start of the Zuninossance (or Junino, whatever you want to call it), which has unfortunately tapered off considerably since. On this Wednesday evening, the Mariners were dead to rights against Minnesota’s Brandon Kintzler – who is quietly one of the better closers in the league – and a two-out bloop and blast bailed the team out and got Mike Z an incredible highlight in a career that is so far primarily full of lowlights. It also sparked what is perhaps Rick Rizzs’ best call since “Everybody Scores!” (1995), as he clairvoyantly hinted at the possibility of “magic at the corner of Edgar & Dave” before erupting into that exact phrase as the ball left the park. It was indeed magic, and it was one of the few moments from this season where I remember exactly where I was and what I was doing when it happened. ~Patrick

Dyson’s bunt that broke up Verlander’s perfecto & sparked a big comeback (June 21)

This moment epitomized the (at times) resilience of this 2017 Ners squad, while also displaying their crafty ability to score runs. As the Tigers’ Justin Verlander entered the 6th inning with a perfect game, Jarrod Dyson controversially bunted to get aboard. Now, normally this is an absolute no-no…that is, unless your team can back up your actions. And back up Dyson is exactly what the team did, coming with 5 unanswered runs and taking victory, 5-4. This season is the first time in a long time in which the Mariners’ greatest weakness is pitching, not hitting, and that game against the Tigers showed this team’s mettle. In my mind is the most dramatic indicator of their ability to piece together a good run and still have a fighter’s chance at a Wild Card spot. ~Charlie

Ariel Miranda’s complete game shutout (June 4)

After we published our May 22nd article that declared Ariel Miranda to be the luckiest player the Mariners have ever snuck away from a trade with, watching the NerMan sweep away the Tampa Bay Rays with a complete game shutout has surely been one of the best moments of the season. Ariel is one of our favorite players on the team, and has been simply amazing stepping up and securing a spot in the rotation that nobody expected would include him at the start of the season. Not only has he proved naysayers wrong – he is now also tied for the most wins on the team with 7. He has struggled his past couple starts, but the simple ability to be effective when the team needs him has made Miranda one of the shining gems of 2017. ~Travis

The two-game sweep of the Phillies to reach .500 for the first time (May 9-10)

At this point in the season, the building list of plaguing injuries had forced the team to declare Yovani Gallardo as the nominal #1 starter – a rough feat in retrospect, but one that does matter when you put up 11 runs a game, as Seattle did during this 2-game series. To watch the team claw their way back to .500 with Canó, Haniger, Segura, and four pieces of the rotation on the DL was simply amazing. The offense finally seemed to wake up, and has slept only occasionally since. Yeah the Blue Jays destroyed us in the series following and the Phillies got their revenge later, but perhaps we can rekindle a bit of this magic in the second half of the season to – once again – claw back to .500. ~Anthony

Best Player Thus Far

Jean Segura

Yeah, he’s been on the DL twice, but that’s the only thing from stopping him being an All Star. Jean has clearly shown his worth in the Taijuan Walker trade, and Dipoto wrapping him up long-term was perhaps one of the best things that has come out of the season. With his impact on the now and promise for the future, Jean takes my award for best player. ~Travis

James Paxton

Like Segura, injuries have hurt Paxton recently – leading now also to a bizarre string of inconsistency in starts. But The Big Maple has shown that he can be the best pitcher in the AL on any given day, and for a team with a rotation as shaky as Seattle’s, that’s fantastic. Even with his past outings being disappointing, nothing can take away from the joy I felt in bragging that the Ners had the best pitcher in baseball for the first month of the season. ~Anthony

Ariel Miranda

Along with being MM’s favorite player, Ariel is the only Ner who has stayed in the rotation from Opening Day until now. He is the only pitcher to have thrown 100 innings, and – as previously mentioned – is currently tied with Paxton for the team lead in wins. And to think that he was acquired for Wade Miley’s dopey ass still amazes me…man, we got lucky. ~Patrick

Ben Gamel

From a purely WAR perspective, Paxton takes the cake in best player thus far – yet in the oh-wow-I-am-pleasantly-surprised-you-kick-ass best player category, Ben Gamel has to be the obvious choice. He has solidified himself as the two-hole hitter these past couple weeks, and still flirts with leading the AL in batting. The fact that he puts a positive defensive WAR and sets the table for Cano-Cruz-Seager is what takes it for me. ~Charlie

Biggest Disappointment Thus Far

Felix Hernandez

I will always expect the King to maintain his dominance from a few years ago, and perhaps this is where I am always going wrong. Watching him age makes us painfully aware of his mortality and the unfortunate ravages of time, and makes us wonder if we should begin taking multivitamins already. It’s tough to see the man who arguably made the late 2000s and early 2010s tolerable for Ner fans fall into apparent mediocrity. We are and will always continue to be optimistic on every Felix Day, but it is just so painful to watch him give up first-inning dingers. There’s still hope for the return of “vintage Felix,” but we aren’t holding our breath. ~Anthony & Charlie

Edwin Diaz

Coming off of the World Baseball Classic, we were all super pumped for Edwin, who had shone brightly for the Puerto Rico team. We all hoped that his performance in the tournament showed that he had put his young & wild tendencies of 2016 behind him…and he just hasn’t. I love him, but I have hardly any confidence in him at all. ~Travis

Drew Smyly

Another guy who was awesome in the WBC and has totally bottomed out. It’s not his fault, but Smyly was probably the offseason acquisition we were most excited about. He was acquired for one of the team’s best pitching prospects in Luiz Gohara (technically for Mallex Smith, who was acquired the same day as Gohara – but you get it), but a soggy arm diagnosis has made it a very real possibility that Drew may never actually pitch for the Ners in a regular season game. That just sucks. ~Patrick

Best Surprise Thus Far

Guillermo Heredia

Just think: Heredia was barely in the organization at this time last year. And yet now, his speed, defense, and quick bat has made him the perfect pick for a fourth outfielder. He is only 26, hits .276, is posting a 2017 WAR of 1.7, and has one of the best nicknames on the team (Matanzas Chocolate). ~Patrick

Ariel Miranda

Sure, he has been inconsistent as of late, but Miranda being the product of the Miley salary dump trade and now being the most reliable starter for the 2017 Ners is definitely surprising. He was the 6th starter coming into the season, and then quickly became the team’s de-facto ace for a brief period and held his water doing it. Is he an ace? No. But he’s a pleasant surprise – and without him, the Ners would be in a far deeper hole than 43-47. ~Charlie

Ben Gamel

How on earth can you not nod your head in appreciation of what Ben Gamel has done this year? Charlie even went as far as to call him our best player thus far – and when you led baseball in batting up until just a few days ago (thanks, Jose Altuve), it is hard not to argue Ben Gamel as best surprise thus far. And if baseball statistics aren’t enough for you…oh, that flow. ~Travis

Jarrod Dyson

Gamel is definitely good, but an aging speedster like Dyson is always a risky signing. Yet Jarrod has already surpassed his career high in dingers and still does things that speed do. Plus his defense has been absolutely unreal, making Leonys Martin feel like a thing of the distant past. ~Anthony

2017 All Star Break: How We Should Proceed >>

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