Mariners Can’t Afford to Let Randy Arozarena Walk

The 2026 Mariners are one of - if not the - most disappointing teams in franchise history. With the 2025 version being just a few innings away from its first World Series berth, expectations were rightfully sky-high this year. And yet the team has completely face planted.

But there are a few positives to glean from 2026.

The main story of this gut-punch year has been the massively disappointing offense in Seattle. Cal Raleigh, Josh Naylor, and Julio Rodríguez are the main culprits in dragging the offense down when they should be the ones lifting the team to higher heights, as none of them have an OPS above .700 in a year where the league average for OPS is .720. Even with the park factors in play for these Mariners, all of those well-paid stars have been below league average.

One player, however, has met and even exceeded expectations: Randy Arozarena is putting together the finest season of his eight-year career. His .278 average, .852 OPS, and 148 wRC+ all are career highs over a full season, while his 25 homers are just two shy of his career high he posted last season. With 11 games remaining in 2026, there’s still a solid chance he can surpass that benchmark, too.