Emily Klesick shares about the current state of the Mariners as we head into the next road trip.
Here, on the 23rd of April 2026, the biggest conversation around the Seattle Mariners is this:
Failing to meet expectations.
As I stood on the concourse for Monday’s game, I watched as my beloved team took an early 3-0 lead. The team was firing on all cylinders. Cal hit a home run in his first plate appearance of the night, Josh Naylor doubled twice, Dom Canzone had a home run and a double, Julio got a couple of hits, and so on.
Then things quieted down in the third inning.
Emerson Hancock began to lose command. The bats cooled off. The handful of runners in scoring position were left there. The A’s bats heated up, Hancock only made it through five innings, and the pitchers who followed him had to throw a ton of pitches to get through the rest of the game. Because the bullpen was already taxed from the series against Texas, Casey Legumina had to pitch the 8th inning, in which he gave up three runs on three hits and a walk.
Their eventual loss that night, followed by a similar loss on Tuesday night, left most of us in a familiar emotional experience. When you’ve been disappointed by your team before, it’s easy to fall back into the pattern of expecting it. But this year really does feel different.
As I’ve mentioned a handful of times on our podcast, Hold My Trident, my theory on the difference of this season is how we arrived here with expectations. The Mariners, coming off a long run into October and having been just a couple of unfortunate pitches away from a World Series appearance, had their fans primed for a dominating start in 2026. We added some of the needed pieces in the offseason. The AL West was looking like a division that the M’s could run away with. Our clubhouse has a group of players who seem ready to fight to take their team all the way.
Their 11-15 start has not been what people anticipated at all. When looking at their March/April schedule, the first month of the season was filled with games that the M’s were in good shape to win. Obviously, that did not happen. It wasn’t until the Mariners played a heavily injured and depleted Astros team that they got a series win, and a sweep nonetheless. Unfortunately, that series was followed by a sweep at the hands of San Diego in the first series of the Vedder Cup. So much for Ichiro’s broken bat fixing the team.
Over the last week since they left San Diego, the Mariners have started to show signs of life, but without many wins to show for it. They managed to win the series against Texas over the weekend, but lost two against the Athletics before eking out a walk-off win on Wednesday. The three glaring issues plaguing the M’s are as follows: not capitalizing on RISP, bullpen arms lacking efficiency/control, and in-game managerial decisions that do not produce results.
As the M’s head back on the road to St. Louis and Minnesota, it’s hard not to look closely at the fact that at this early juncture of the season, they are 1-for-8 on the road. The Cardinals have had a good start to the season, sitting 15-10, while the Twins are sitting at .500. Unfortunately, Brendan Donovan’s injury means he will not travel with the team to his old stomping grounds, and the M’s are sorely missing his ability to creatively get on base and score. The heart of the order is heating up, with Cal homering in all three games of the A’s series, Julio maintaining a multi-game on-base streak, and Josh recording multiple hits, including Wednesday’s walk-off. As positive as this development is after their slow start, it remains to be seen if these hitters will be able to manufacture baserunners that can create runs on the scoreboard.
Hopefully this road trip will be the one that the M’s can use to turn things around. To believe they can make a run this year, we need to see them stack up some solid road wins. To feel confident in their ability to win games, we need to see all aspects of the team (starting pitching, bullpen, offense, defense, and management) firing on all cylinders.
I’m still very firmly in the “it’s early” camp, but as a former teacher, I will stand by this early grade for the Mariners:
The M’s are a pleasure to have in class, but are not meeting expectations. Further review will be needed; expect another progress report soon.
