Spring training preview: Questions abound around Mariners’ infield plan

SEATTLE – Around the diamond, there are questions at every infield position for the Mariners, and certainly at designated hitter, too.

There are also reasons to think this group could be useful this year.

Let’s dig into the infield options as we continue our position previews ahead of the start of Mariners spring training Wednesday.

Projected depth chart

Catcher

Cal Raleigh

Mitch Garver

First base

Luke Raley

Donovan Solano

Tyler Locklear

Mitch Garver

Second base

Dylan Moore

Ryan Bliss

Leo Rivas

Cole Young

Third base

Jorge Polanco

Donovan Solano

Dylan Moore

Ben Williamson

Shortstop

J.P. Crawford

Leo Rivas

Dylan Moore

Designated hitter

Mitch Haniger

Mitch Garver

Donovan Solano

Austin Shenton

2024 review

Two of the Mariners’ core players are coming off starkly contrasting season.

Cal Raleigh was the Mariners’ MVP in 2024, leading the team in homers (34), RBIs (100) and bWAR (4.7) and winning his first Gold Glove and the Platinum Glove as the best defensive player in the AL.

J.P. Crawford, meanwhile, had the worst full season of his career, posting an 89 wRC+ to go with a .202/.304/.321 slash line (.625 OPS) in 105 games. His season was marred by an oblique injury in April and a broken hand in July, and he just never seemed to find a rhythm at the plate. Even with all that, he still posted a 2.7 bWAR that ranked among the team leaders.

Reasons for optimism

Raleigh plus Raley.

Raleigh is the best two-way catcher in baseball and he’s in the prime of his career. That’s a great place to start.

After a shaky start, Raley was as good as the Mariners could have reasonably hoped in his first season in Seattle. He has work to do to get more acclimated on defense at first base, but there’s little reason to think his bat won’t again be a valuable middle-of-the-order presence, particularly against right-handed pitchers.

Raley hit 22 homers with a 129 wRC+ in 455 plate appearances last year, after hitting 19 homers with a 129 wRC+ in 406 plate appearances for Tampa Bay in 2023.

The Mariners are counting on Crawford to rebound in his age-30 season.

Crawford isn’t far removed from the most productive season of his career, when he posted an .818 OPS with 19 homers and a .380 OBP in 2023.

It’s reasonable to think he will produce at a rate somewhere in between 2023 and ’24 – something closer to his career averages of .245/.338/.368 (.707 OPS) with a 101 wRC+ and his usual elite defense.

Reasons for concern

Quite a few, actually.

How will Jorge Polanco make the transition to third base?

What might a bounce-back look like for Crawford?

Can Dylan Moore stick as an everyday second baseman? Or is he more valuable in a utility role?

Can Raley settle in at first with his defense?

What roles will 34-year-olds Garver and Haniger play?

Do the Mariners need 37-year-old Donovan Solano to be more than a part-time platoon bat against left-handed pitching?

Will the Mariners feel the need to rush top prospects Cole Young and Ben Williamson, who would probably be best served with full seasons in Triple-A?

Breakout candidates

There is bubbling hype building around Young and Williamson. Young is the Mariners’ second baseman of the future, and Williamson has been labeled the best defensive third baseman in all the minors.

How they fare against big-league competition in spring training will be one of the more intriguing storylines for the Mariners.

Same goes for Ryan Bliss and Leo Rivas, who both made good impressions in their big-league debuts in 2024.

Bliss, 25, had a 101 wRC+ in just 71 plate appearances with the Mariners last season. He struggled against fastballs (.192 batting average) and posted a high strikeout rate (31%), but he also showed good pop (two homers, three doubles, one triple), good speed (five steals) and a solid glove in limited playing time. This spring could be his best chance to stick on a major-league roster – the opportunity is there.

Rivas, a 27-year-old Venezuelan, impressed with excellent defense in his first taste of the majors last season. He could be a valuable option off the bench as a defensive replacement and pinch runner.