Mariners’ Half-Measure Deadline Additions Floundering

The Seattle Mariners certainly didn’t have the sexiest trade deadline. No big fish like Mason Miller came to town. They didn’t make a serious run at Tarik Skubal. Most of the bats that moved at the deadline have not panned out for their new teams. They made two very mild additions while shedding payroll.

For the Mariners, their only offensive acquisition was Taylor Ward, from Baltimore. To be fair, on paper, this made all the sense in the world. He was only one season removed from a 36-homer campaign with the Angels in the AL West. He mashes lefties and plays a decent outfield. The Mariners are one of the worst teams against left-handed pitchers, ranking 29th in team OPS. Ward was supposed to shore that up.