Hot topics for Mariners before '24

This story was excerpted from Daniel Kramer’s Mariners Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

SEATTLE -- If it seems like each of the past two or three offseasons has been tabbed among the most crucial in recent memory for the Mariners, consider that this winter they firmly believe that they’re in a World Series window, are coming off a season in which they fell short of postseason expectations and are dealing with budget constraints that were unforeseen at the offseason’s outset.

That makes this period of player acquisition, in so many ways, vital.

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“I think we have a good team,” president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said at the Winter Meetings. “We have an excellent young core. We have an awesome pitching staff. Our starting rotation is as good as anybody's in the league. We've got a very good bullpen, especially the back end.”

But there are still notable holes the club must fill before pitchers and catchers report in mid-February.

“Up the middle, our offensive team is exceptionally good,” Dipoto said. “On the corners, we've weakened ourselves a little bit. And that's the area that we anticipated having to address and we continue to understand that that's the area we're going to have to address.”

With the new year right around the corner and resolutions being crafted, here’s a look ahead to where things stand with the Mariners:

Biggest question to answer before Spring Training
What will the lineup look like?
The Mariners have taken a subtract-then-add approach with their position-player personnel this offseason, freeing up more than $30 million in payroll by trading well-known players Jarred Kelenic, Eugenio Suárez, Marco Gonzales and Evan White. And while Dipoto indicated at the Winter Meetings that the Mariners are transitioning to the “addition” phase, they’ve yet to fill the holes they created. They still have at least one big move in them, if not more, but for a front office that typically augments early each offseason, this one has moved uncharacteristically slow.

One player poised to have a breakout season
Outfielder Dominic Canzone
After career years in 2023, J.P. Crawford and Cal Raleigh have had their breakouts. The same could be said for Logan Gilbert and George Kirby on the mound. They have established themselves among the American League’s best starting pitchers. Canzone, the Trade Deadline acquisition in the Paul Sewald deal, certainly falls more under the radar. But he showed big-time power as a rookie last year, has raked at every stop in the Minors and will see more playing time now that Kelenic is gone.

Prospect to watch in 2024
Shortstop Felnin Celesten
Infielder Cole Young and catcher Harry Ford are at the top of the organization’s MLB Pipeline rankings but are still a little ways away from the Majors. Infielders Tyler Locklear and Ryan Bliss could debut as soon as 2024. But Celesten is arguably Seattle’s most intriguing prospect heading into next season. Months after he signed with Seattle as the No. 2 prospect in last offseason’s international class, a Grade 2 hamstring strain suffered in early June prevented him from playing in the Dominican Summer League. Many eyes will be eager to watch him at full strength this year.

One prediction for the new year
Julio Rodríguez makes a serious run at the AL MVP Award.
The most notable blockade has been lifted after Shohei Ohtani jetted for the Dodgers and the National League, thus widening the field of contenders. And with Rodríguez primed to take another big step forward in 2024, and with even more of a spotlight on him to lead the Mariners’ offense after the departures of key contributors Suárez, Kelenic and Teoscar Hernández, Year 3 feels like one in which that Rodríguez could achieve sustained success for the 162-game marathon.