After such a promising start to the road trip, the Seattle Mariners are skidding into the All-Star break on the heels of maybe their most frustrating series of the season.

Mariners select switch-pitcher with first-round pick in MLB Draft

The Mariners began their Southern California trip last week with a two-game sweep of the San Diego Padres and an 11-0 thrashing of the lowly Los Angeles Angels on Thursday night.

But things quickly turned after that.

On Friday night, the Mariners lost 6-5 on a walkoff two-run home run by Willie Calhoun in the 10th inning. On Saturday night, they fell 2-1. And on Sunday afternoon, they blew a late lead and lost 3-2 after Jo Adell hit a three-run homer in the eighth. Three games, three agonizing one-run losses to one of the worst teams in baseball.

Here’s a look at what stands out for the M’s heading into the All-Star break.

Seattle Mariners standings update

Remember back on June 19 when the Mariners held a massive 10-game lead atop the American League West? That sure seems like a long time ago now. Seattle (52-46) enters the break with just a one-game division lead over the Houston Astros (50-46) and a five-game advantage over the Texas Rangers (46-50). Buckle up, because the final two and a half months could be quite a race in the AL West.

Hitting woes continue

The Mariners had two big offensive outbursts this past week, racking up eight runs and 13 hits against the Padres on Tuesday and 11 runs and 15 hits against the Angels on Thursday. However, those performances came with some major caveats: Seattle scored nearly all of those runs against a Padres rookie starter who entered with a 7.52 ERA, an Angels rookie who was making his MLB debut and an Angels long reliever who was making his season debut.

In their other four games this past week, the Mariners mustered a total of just 10 runs. On Wednesday, they managed just two runs and four hits against the Padres. And over the final 25 innings of their weekend series against the Angels, the M’s totaled just four runs against a pitching staff that has the third-worst ERA in the majors. The series ended with a dismal showing on Sunday, when Angels long reliever Carson Fulmer struck out seven of the 17 Mariners he faced in his season debut. Seattle was no-hit through five innings and finished with 15 strikeouts. It was the eighth time this season that the Mariners have struck out 15-plus times.

Heading into the All-Star break, Seattle ranks 28th in runs per game (3.87), dead-last in batting average (.219), 25th in on-base percentage (.300), 28th in slugging percentage (.367) and 28th in OPS (.667). The Mariners also have far and away the highest strikeout rate in the league at 28.1%, which is two full percentage points higher than the next-closest team. Seattle has been held to three runs or fewer in 50 of its 98 games, including 14 times in its past 23 games.

Julio heating up

Julio Rodríguez is finally starting to look like Julio Rodríguez. After a perplexing first half of the season, the Mariners’ 23-year-old slugger seems to be rediscovering the superstar form that made him one of baseball’s brightest young talents over his first two MLB seasons. Since July 4, Rodríguez is batting 16 for 30 with three homers and three doubles. To put that in context: He has six extra-base hits in his past 30 at-bats. Prior to that, he had just 13 extra-base hits in 344 at-bats this season. If this is indeed a turning point for Rodríguez, that would be a major boost for Seattle’s struggling lineup.

Cal’s massive week

The other bright spot for the Mariners’ offense this past week was Cal Raleigh. The 27-year-old catcher blasted five homers over the first four games of the road trip, twice homering from both sides of the plate in the same game. During that four-game span, he went 8 for 17 with six extra-base hits. He also picked up his fifth stolen base, making him a perfect 5 for 5 on stolen-base attempts this season after swiping only one bag combined over his first three MLB seasons.

Raleigh has 20 home runs at the break, which ranks 13th in the majors and is three more than any other catcher in baseball. He also has throw out an MLB-leading 23 base-stealers, which is three more than the next-closest catcher. His five stolen bases are also tied for the MLB lead among catchers.

Gilbert caps first half in style

One week ago, Logan Gilbert was named to his first All-Star Game. The 27-year-old right-hander then backed up his selection with two more brilliant outings. Last Tuesday against the Padres, Gilbert took a shutout into the seventh inning and finished by allowing just three runs and four hits in 7 2/3 strong frames. He then tossed seven scoreless innings of two-hit ball against the Angels on Sunday, while racking up nine strikeouts and no walks en route to his MLB-leading 16th quality starts.

Gilbert has posted a 2.79 ERA and an MLB-best 0.87 WHIP in 132 1/3 innings this season, while totaling 124 strikeouts and 25 walks. He leads the majors in innings pitched, ranks fifth with a .191 opponent batting average and is 10th in ERA. He has allowed one earned run or fewer in 10 of his 20 starts and has thrown seven-plus scoreless innings four times, including three times in his past six outings.

Seattle Mariners’ one-run magic has flipped

Seattle had excelled in one-run games earlier this season, but it’s been the opposite over the past 10 days. The Mariners have lost five consecutive one-run games, dropping three straight one-run games to the Angels this past weekend and back-to-back one-run games to the Toronto Blue Jays the previous weekend. Seattle is now 19-14 in one-run contests this year.

Up next

After the All-Star break, the Mariners open the unofficial second half of the season on Friday with a massive three-game against the Astros at T-Mobile Park. It will be the third of four series between the AL West rivals this year and could go a long way to determining the division title. Seattle is 5-2 against the Astros this season.

More on the Seattle Mariners

• Seattle Mariners MLB Draft Tracker: Keep up with every 2024 pick
• How Mariners prospects did in MLB Futures Game
• The Mariners player who doesn’t want All-Star break to happen
• Mariners closer Andrés Muñoz added to AL All-Star team
• Seattle Mariners Trade Targets: Three bats from within AL West

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Wake Forest pitcher commit Ryan Sloan has heard his name called in the 2024 MLB Amateur Draft. The Seattle Mariners selected him with the No. 55 overall pick in the second round.

Sloan put together a decorated high school career at York Community High School in Illinois, with a fastball topping out upward of 100 miles per hour. The Gatorade Player of the Year, he finished his senior year with a 0.30 ERA along with 90 strikeouts across 46 innings of work while helping YCHS to another fourth-place finish in the state of Illinois.

During his career at York, Sloan cemented himself as one of the top pitchers in the country after announcing his commitment to Wake Forest in February 2021. The key to his success is having the right mentality, though, and that’s helping set him up for a potential pro career.

“I always thought like you can’t get too high or too low,” Sloan said, via CBS Chicago’s Jori Parys. “Like, you’ve just got to stay on an even line, and eventually, you know, over time, you’ll end up going up. You know, you can’t give into, like, all the curves.”

Scouting report on Ryan Sloan

Sloan is known as a flamethrower, which was a key part of his success at the high school level, but can also mix in different speeds with his fastball. He can also add in some off-speed pitches to mess with hitters even more, and that’s part of what made him intriguing as an MLB Draft prospect.

“Gatorade’s Illinois high school player of the year, Sloan shows the ability to manipulate a 93-96 mph fastball that tops out at 99, as he can ride and run it at the top of the zone, cut it in on left-handers or sink it for ground balls,” MLB.com’s scouting report said. “He has a more advanced changeup than most prepsters, throwing hitters off balance with a mid-80s cambio that fades and sinks. His low-80s slider is nearly as good, featuring two-plane depth and some horizontal action as well.

“Six-foot-4 and 220 pounds, Sloan has a strong lower half and is built to eat innings. A Wake Forest recruit, he uses his size to create extension and a flat approach angle to add deception. He repeats his delivery well and throws his entire arsenal for quality strikes.”

Closing in on training camp report date for all 32 NFL teams in the next two weeks, Quandre Diggs has found himself in unchartered territory without a team more than four months after the Seattle Seahawks released him in a cap-saving move prior to the start of free agency.

Luckily for Diggs, though he will likely have to wait until July 15 to play like the rest of the masses despite his pleas on social media, the arrival of the much-anticipated College Football 25 video game from EA Sports this upcoming week will give him a fun distraction in the meantime as he awaits his next NFL opportunity. The situation could certainly be worse.

Nonetheless, it’s been an odd offseason for veteran safeties such as Diggs to say the least. Several high-profile players at the position landed on the unemployment line before the new league year started in March with teams eager to create spending space elsewhere, including former Broncos All-Pro Justin Simmons, who like Diggs has yet to sign with a new team as training camps rapidly approach.

Considering his resume, it’s a significant surprise Diggs hasn’t found a new home yet. Before the streak came to a halt last season, he had tallied at least three interceptions in six consecutive seasons, the longest active streak in the NFL in that time period. He also made three straight Pro Bowl squads from 2020 to 2022, recording 14 interceptions, 10 pass breakups, and 158 solo tackles in that span as one of the top free safeties in the sport.

But to this point, teams across the NFL haven’t shown much interest in signing safeties north of 30 years of age remaining available on the market. In addition to Diggs and Simmons, former Bears All-Pro Eddie Jackson, former Bills Pro Bowler Micah Hyde, and steady former Cowboys starter Jayron Kearse have yet to ink a deal with a new team, a clear statement on the sign of the times with so many quality football safeties still on the street.

If there’s reason for optimism for players such as Diggs, his former Seahawks teammate Jamal Adams signed a one-year deal with the Titans last week. However, coming off another injury-shortened season, Adams had to settle for a veteran’s minimum contract worth $1.125 million, and other veteran safeties in need of jobs may have to be willing to play at a significant discount themselves.

In the case of Diggs, he doesn’t have the lengthy injury history Adams has, but he’s now 31 years old, which likely stands out as the biggest reason he remains on the job search. While other teams may still inquire about his availability with camp coming up soon, with opportunities drying up around the league, reuniting with the Seahawks may be the best fit for both the player and team in 2024.

Shortly after releasing Diggs and Adams, Seattle moved quickly to sign replacements, bringing former Jaguars starter Rayshawn Jenkins and utility defensive back K’Von Wallace into the fold in free agency. Offering extensive experience at both safety spots, Jenkins will slot in as a starter alongside Pro Bowler Julian Love, who will be entering a contract year with much at stake in new coach Mike Macdonald’s defense.

With Jenkins on board and Love returning, a starting spot isn’t readily available for Diggs, which would require some concessions from a player who has started 104 games since 2017. But even if he isn’t viewed as an every down player at this stage, that doesn’t mean he couldn’t provide value in a situational role either, especially playing for Macdonald, who prioritized deploying three safety sets as the Ravens defensive coordinator over the past two seasons.

Though he only intercepted one pass in 2024 – his lowest output since 2016 – and missed more tackles than he has in the past, Diggs still had a decent season for the Seahawks a year ago. Per Pro Football Focus, he ranked 19th in receptions allowed (20), 24th in yardage allowed (247), and tied for 10th in touchdowns allowed (1) out of 63 qualified safeties, and he totaled a career-best 95 combined tackles. Still able to cover a lot of ground as a deep safety, his penchant for hunting picks would still be an invaluable asset for Macdonald’s defense in passing situations.

Diggs also previously played slot corner earlier in his career for the Lions, and while he wouldn’t be expected to see many snaps in that role, he could sub in during dime packages in a pinch and offer the ability to slide down to cover slot receivers or crawl up towards the box if called upon. Mixing and matching a combination of him, Love, and Jenkins would give Macdonald no shortage of options for how he could deploy the trio, opening up the entire playbook.

Financially, Seattle also has a little more wiggle room to add a quality veteran like Diggs than it did a month ago, as restructuring defensive tackle Dre’Mont Jones’ contract pushed their open cap space up to $8 million. While he shouldn’t expect much more than what Adams received from Tennessee, it’s possible incentives could be baked in to sweeten the deal for a player the organization still holds great respect for.

Ultimately, if Diggs desires a starting job over playing a reserve role with a potential contender, coming back to Seattle likely won’t be at the top of his wish list, and an injury elsewhere early in camp could spawn desperation for another team to acquire his services. It’s not uncommon for veterans with extensive experience to wait things out into training camp before the right opportunity finally presents itself, and being patient in this instance isn’t necessarily the wrong move.

But with rookies starting to report for camps around the league next week, the reality is that Diggs hasn’t had an opportunity elsewhere come his way yet worth jumping at, and the little money left for most teams to spend won’t be set aside for aging safeties.

Still a capable defender who offers leadership, positional flexibility, and plenty of ball-hawking skills, Diggs could step right in as a viable rotational coverage safety for the Seahawks with a chance to still make a significant impact in a defensive scheme that leans heavily on five and six-defensive back formations. If he’s hoping to land a job soon and wants to contribute for a playoff push rather than rack up virtual years on his College Football 25 dynasty, going back to familiar surroundings would be an ideal scenario for all parties.