Brady's Take: Mariners Obviously Need More From Their Core

We can talk all we want about the trade deadline acquisitions that the Seattle Mariners need to make, but the bottom line is this: If the guys they've counted on and deemed as their leaders don't produce, it won't matter one bit.

Seattle Mariners centerfielder Julio Rodriguez (44) reacts after reaching second base on an error during the eighth inning against the Minnesota Twins at T-Mobile Park on June 28. / Stephen Brashear-USA TODAY Sports

We can talk about trade deadline and all the moves that the Seattle Mariners should make all we want, but the bottom line is this: If the M's team leaders don't produce like they are capable of, none of it is going to matter.

There's a fundamental principle that I hold to key to my heart in sports: Your stars have to play like stars. And right now, the Seattle Mariners stars are not doing that.

Julio Rodriguez, Cal Raleigh, J.P. Crawford, Jorge Polanco, and to a lesser degree, Mitch Garver, have to step up or the M's will find themselves sweating out a chance at a wild card berth for the fourth straight year.

Take a look at these numbers:

Player	Career OPS+	2024 OPS+	2023 Batting Avg.	2024 Batting Avg.
Julio Rodriguez	125	84	.275	.247
JP Crawford	103	98	.266	.215
Cal Raleigh	105	97	.232	.202
Mitch Garver	119	89	.270	.172
Jorge Polanco	109	72	.255	.197

Whether you are analytically-inclined or traditional stat-inclined, you can see that those five players are currently performing well-below their career norms, and well-below their recent 2023 production.

If the Mariners want to hold onto win the West for the first time since the 2001 season, they are clearly going to need improvement from each of those five players. Their own improvement, or their continued regressions, will be more pivotol to this team's chances than any outside addition.

In the case of Garver and Polanco, these are the guys that the organization identified, targeted and paid this offseason. They need to live up to the investments made in them. In the case of Rodriguez, Crawford and Raleigh, these are the guys that the organization has chosen to build around internally. Rodriguez and Crawford have also been paid and invested in long-term, and they need to step up to that investment as well. They have obviously done it before, but this is a "what have you done for me lately" kind of situation.

The Mariners play the Orioles on Tuesday night at 6:40 p.m. ET.

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