Why the Seattle Mariners' bats were the best in the AL this month

During ESPN baseball insider Jeff Passan's weekly conversation with Seattle Sports' Brock and Salk about the Mariners, he had to take a step back when discussing the M's potentially trading one of their starting pitchers for offensive reinforcements this upcoming offseason.

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“If you want a guy with a big 'D' in return, I think you're going to have to give up (Logan) Gilbert or (George) Kirby,” Passan said Tuesday. “And that's probably at the end of the day the position I would personally lean toward, and it pains me to say that. And it especially pains me to say that after seeing, oh my gosh, maybe this Mariners team has the ability to hit after all.”

Passan had good reason to say that. The Mariners are third in MLB in September and lead the American League in both team OPS (.795) and runs scored (108). Seattle is also third in MLB in hits this month with 196 in 21 games so far, has the second-most walks (84) and its 195 strikeouts are fewer than six other teams, an improvement for an offense that leads the league in that category this season.

“The third-best offense in baseball (in September) — the best offense in the American League, guys — was your Seattle Mariners. And I'll be honest, I didn't think they had that in them,” Passan said. “I don't know if that's sustainable, probably not at this point, but it was certainly nice to see.”

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Of course, there is concern that the Mariners' (81-76) offensive surge came a little too late on Tuesday, even though they have five games remaining and are still 1 1/2 games out of a playoff spot.

“It was certainly frustrating to see what could have been if they had just shown up two weeks earlier — not even four weeks or six weeks or eight weeks,” Passan said of Seattle's September performance at that bat. “Just two weeks of this and the Mariners are in the playoffs, and we don't get to experience the excitement that we're going through this week while you guys are sitting there with your nails bitten off from biting because you're too nervous to put up with what this team has put you through all season long.”

Who is behind the Mariners’ resurgence?

OK, so why have the Mariners been so much better with bats this month? Passan pointed to a few specific players, starting with the man at the top of Seattle's lineup.

“It's such a weird statement: Victor Robles was unbelievable in September,” Passan said. “I think Victor Robles set the charts as a guy who doesn't strike out, as a guy who gets on base… I think when you have somebody on base, guys, it just changes the mindset of this team, and all Victor Robles did all month was get on base.”

In 18 games in September, Robles has a stellar slash line of .444/.522/.574 for a 1.096 OPS with seven doubles, 17 runs scored, eight RBIs and 11 stolen bases in 12 attempts (though it's hard to forget that one time he got caught).

Passan also mentioned current AL Player of the Week Julio Rodríguez, who is hitting .351/.375/.588 with a .963 OPS with six home runs, five doubles and six steals in September, as well as catcher Cal Raleigh, who is hitting an impressive .276/.394/.474 batting average (.868 OPS) with four home runs and three doubles this month.

But besides Robles, there is another new addition during the season that catches Passan's attention: Justin Turner, Seattle's 39-year-old first baseman.

“Justin Turner was also like Justin Turner at his best,” he said. “… My favorite hitter in baseball, which is the NBA equivalent, there are the 50/40/90 guys — 50% from the field, 40% from the 3-point line, 90% from the free throw line. The equivalent for me in baseball is the .300/.400/.500 guy — .300 batting average, .400 on-base, .500 slugging. Justin Turner had .299/.398/.463 this month. That's about as productive as you can imagine for someone at his position.”

Still a source of frustration

It's certainly nice to see the Mariners' offense produce such a performance to end the season, but if Seattle can't close the gap in such a short amount of time this week, the mood won't be quite as positive.

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“It's like it could have been,” Passan said. “It's encouraging and incredibly frustrating to know that the Mariners had this in them and finally got it done after all this time. And I think that shows that this team missed an opportunity, and if they don't get it done, we'll look back on that.”

Listen to Tuesday's conversation with ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan on the podcast at the top of this post or at this link. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.

More coverage of the Seattle Mariners

• Mariners activate reliever Gregory Santos from the injured list
• Julio Rodríguez named AL Player of the Week
• The final kick-off: What the Mariners can expect in the final week
• Astros star injured before big series against M's in Houston
• Five young talents from the Seattle Mariners who increased their value through great seasons

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