It was good to see the ballpark buzzing once again as the full-fledged Seattle Mariners FanFest returned to T-Mobile Park.

Steelheads uniforms will be Mariners’ new home Sunday look

Fans had the opportunity to get behind the scenes and tour the Mariners’ and visitor’s clubhouses, run the bases, take a picture at home plate with the trident and throw from the bullpen mound. There were autograph opportunities and “Dugout Dialogues” as well, with numerous players on hand taking part, including Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodríguez, Josh Naylor, George Kirby, Gabe Speier and a number of the Mariners’ highly touted prospects.

On the airwaves and in person, Gary Hill, Aaron Goldsmith and I held a live Hot Stove Show from Edgar’s Cantina, with former Mariners center fielder Franklin Gutierrez, president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto, Raleigh, Speier, Kirby and Emerson Hancock stopping by.

Here are some quick hits from those conversations.

Guti talks J-Rod and Laz

Gutierrez, who has been working with Mariners outfielders since 2021 as a special assignment coach, raised an eyebrow when he talked about Rodríguez – who this week was named baseball’s best center fielder by MLB Network.

“He is still developing as one of the best in the business,” Gutierrez said. “He likes to listen, he likes to improve on every area of his game. That’s why he’s going to be so successful.”

So, he thinks the ceiling for Rodriguez in center field is even higher?

“I do,” Gutierrez said. “He’s still grinding in there. He’s still asking questions about how he can get better, especially how he can prepare himself on every pitch, how he can move better. All of those questions are very important for him just to be who he wants to be.”

Gutierrez raised another ceiling when talking about highly touted outfield prospect Lazaro Montes, who he has also worked closely with.

“His attitude is pretty much like Julio’s,” Gutierrez said. “He’s different. He will be (a corner outfielder), but he wants to get better. He wants to know what he can do better in the outfield, how he can move. I think he is still young, still developing. In my mind, I think he’s going to be a really, really, really good player. He’s not going to be average. I think he is going to be a little bit above average in the outfield.”

Dipoto: M’s not done adding

Dipoto indicated not once, but twice, that the Mariners are not finished when it comes to player acquisitions.

When asked to sum up the offseason, he said they were still working to make an addition. And then again, he echoed that sentiment when asked what they were bringing into spring training in two weeks compared to what they finished the season with on the field in Game 7 of the ALCS in Toronto.

“I do think there is one more player that is coming along for the ride that is not in a Mariners uniform just yet,” Dipoto said.

WBC creates spring training opportunity for M’s prospects

Another topic addressed was the World Baseball Classic, which will take a large number of players out of Mariners camp.

“We have in the organization 19 players on preliminary rosters – 13 are associated with the big league team – and we think we will lose 11 when it starts,” Dipoto said. “Only the Dodgers have more.”

This leaves huge opportunity for the Mariners’ prospects in spring training. Dipoto relayed a conversation he had with Colt Emerson earlier in the day, with his message being to take advantage of the runway we are giving you. He’s excited to see what the 20-year-old top prospect is able to do.

“He’s not going to knock on the door. He’s just going to knock it down. You know when you are watching it,” Dipoto said. “We trust that if these guys come into spring training and do their thing and are ready to go, we are going to give them their chance.”

Speier, Cal discuss WBC invites

Among those leaving camp will be Speier, who was thrilled to be selected to Team USA. He shared the story of how he got the news after a workout when he saw a missed call notice on his phone from: “Maybe Mark DeRosa.”

“Just the feelings going through me when I saw this, it was an easy yes,” Speier said.

It has been quite an ascension for Speier, who was pitching at Triple-A just two years ago.

“It’s wild to just take a step back and reflect how I got to this point,” Speier said. “A lot of thanks to the M’s for believing in me and claiming me off waivers from Kansas City and putting the ball in my hands in big spots. I’m proud to play for Team USA and rep the country. It’s wild to think about.”

Raleigh was also an “easy yes” to DeRosa and Team USA. Perhaps a little too easy.

“We were in New York playing the Mets and D-Ro called me,” Raleigh said. “I was super excited. I was like, yes, I’m in. I was so excited. Dream came true. Such a cool thing to do. I committed.”

Did he perhaps forget something that day?

“It kind of hit me a couple of days after – Oh, I didn’t tell Jerry or Justin (Hollander) or Dan (Wilson). I might get in trouble for this,” Raleigh said sheepishly. “So I had to backtrack a little bit, reach out and ask. I think they knew. I think D-Ro called them too, but I was like, hey, I kind of went the wrong way. I said yes because I was so excited, but having to backtrack, I thought it was kind of funny.”

Catching up with Kirby and Hancock

It was good to catch up with Kirby, who has not added a new pitch but, as always, was happy to talk about his knuckleball.

It was interesting to hear that he had been throwing bullpens to new catcher Andrew Knizer in Florida. Last week on the Hot Stove Show, Logan Gilbert noted Knizer had called him a few times and was going about the business of learning the pitchers.

Hancock is an interesting one heading into spring training. With the loss of Logan Evans to UCL surgery, pitching as a reliever exclusively appears to be off the table for Hancock, and he is preparing as such.

“I think this offseason has just been the normal build-up, then just adjust if we have to,” Hancock said.

Hancock’s attitude and outlook about his role over the last year has been fantastic, despite often not knowing where he will be day to day.

“Just go out there and enjoy it with the guys. Be grateful for the job you have been given and do the best you can when your name is called,” Hancock said. “It was a good year.

“The baseball season is so long, there is so much up and down and so much you learn, and then the next thing you know, you’re out of the bullpen,” he said with a laugh. “But awesome. What a year, what an experience, the run that we had. And to share it with the fans, it was incredible.”

More on the Seattle Mariners

• Seattle Mariners lose RHP Logan Evans to UCL surgery
• Seattle Mariners’ non-roster spring invites include top picks of 2025
• Logan Gilbert has the scoop on what Mariners’ rotation has been up to
• Mariners reveal the ways to watch games on TV this season
• Coach’s Insight: Why this could be Julio’s big year

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