Commentary: Mariners have to get Cal Raleigh some help

SEATTLE – The Seattle Mariners are who we thought they were.

On offense, at least.

Do not be distracted by the unsustainably scorching start, by Cal Raleigh’s otherworldly production propping up everyone else, by the promise of a Julio Rodriguez hot streak or a Luke Raley return. Do not let an encouraging April cloud the increasingly obvious:

The Mariners have to get Raleigh some help.

That was clear in Thursday’s 4-3 loss to the Baltimore Orioles, in which Raleigh supplied all of the Mariners’ offense. The 28-year-old catcher and MVP candidate lined an RBI single to left field in the third inning and added adding a towering two-run homer in the fifth. He missed an additional two-run homer by about a foot in the first, and sent a 107.3-mph sizzler to the center-field warning track in the eighth.

“It’s T-Mobile (Park). It’s hard to hit it out,” Raleigh said of the near misses after Thursday’s sweep. “So I try to square it up and hope they go over. If they don’t, they don’t.”

Which makes Raleigh’s 24 homers – most in MLB – even more remarkable. But how reliant are the Mariners on Raleigh’s booming bat? He’s homered in each of their past five wins, dating back to May 19 – 15 games ago.

Of course, Seattle has also gone 5-10 in that stretch, dropping series to the sub-.500 Nationals (29-32) and the Orioles (25-36) at home.

Because – as Angels fans are aware – it takes more than one streaking slugger to lift a lineup.

Which is why it’s on the Mariners to make a major move. With the AL West mouthwateringly winnable, and the trade deadline looming less than two months away, it’s high time to take a significant swing.

As ESPN analyst Jeff Passan wrote this week: “The Mariners are going to be aggressive at this deadline, and they have the minor league capital to swing a deal for anyone.”

Seattle is stocked with nine of MLB’s top 100 minor league prospects, as well as two starting pitchers – Emerson Hancock and Logan Evans – who fall outside of the Mariners’ rotation when Logan Gilbert returns. The Mariners have as much or more to offer than anybody, and they shouldn’t hesitate to trade prospects or expendable starting pitchers for instant impact bats.

Given that so few teams are out of contention, significant deals will likely wait until closer to the deadline. But considering the context – a 10-15 record since they won nine consecutive series, and three or fewer runs in 10 of their last 15 games – it’s not too early to conclude the Mariners need hitting help.

Sure, I admit it: It worked for a while. Through 30 games, the Mariners looked like one of baseball’s best offenses. They hit homers, took walks, worked counts, stole bases … and struck out a little less.

But the Mariners’ first 60 games – Thursday’s loss was their 61st – can be split into two dissimilar seasons.

March/April (30 games, 18-12)

HR: 39 (T-first)

Runs: 138 (fifth)

SB: 32 (third)

BB%: 11.3% (first)

K%: 21.9% (16th)

OBP: .345 (first)

SLG: .427 (sixth)

May/June (30 games, 14-17)

HR: 35 (T-13th)

Runs: 114 (T-21st)

SB: 18 (20th)

BB%: 7.7% (T-21st)

K%: 23.8% (fifth)

OBP: .298 (T-27th)

SLG: .370 (22nd)

First, they flourished.

Then they faded.

Now, what’s next?

The answer must involve meaningful outside additions. Unless you believe the first-base platoon of Rowdy Tellez (-0.4 WAR, .204/.257/.431 slash line) and Donovan Solano (-0.6, .169/.207/.195) can be more than they’ve been. Unless you believe rookies Cole Young and Ben Williamson are instant answers at second and third base. Unless you believe Jorge Polanco – whose first-inning double Thursday was his first extra-base hit since May 12 – can rediscover his swing.

Unless you believe the past 30 games are an insignificant sample size, and not more evidence of what we’ve seen for several seasons.

Unless you believe eternally optimistic Mariners manager Dan Wilson.

“That’s baseball. It can be an up-and-down game at times. That’s the way it is sometimes,” Wilson said Thursday of his offense’s extended slide. “But I think this team, with the spirit they have, the heart they have, we’ll be back. We still have a long way to go.”

Spirit and heart help.

But how about another hitter?

Considering the underwhelming competition – Houston (33-28), Texas (29-33) and the Los Angeles Angels (28-33) – the Mariners must seize an opportunity to win the AL West.

That doesn’t involve asking rookies and aging veterans to figure it out on the fly.

It also doesn’t involve selling the farm for a few months of rental pop. But whether it’s Orioles first baseman Ryan O’Hearn, Diamondbacks third baseman and former Mariner Eugenio Suarez or (fill in your favorite hitter), it’s time to take a risk.

Not that an influx of offense would fix all their flaws. Seattle’s rotation has been atypically unreliable, as Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller and George Kirby all work back from injuries. The Mariners’ bullpen, dogged by injuries and inconsistency, has stumbled as well.

Eventually, the Mariners’ starting pitchers must be who we thought they were.

But even baseball’s best catcher can’t carry an entire offense. Thursday’s loss, and the 30 games prior, are proof he needs some help.