Seattle Mariners

Seattle Mariners outfielder Keon Broxton has been suspended two games by Major League Baseball after his thrown batting glove made contact with an umpire during Monday's 5-4 loss to the New York Yankees at T-Mobile Park.  

Joe Torre, MLB's chief baseball officer, announced Broxton's suspension and his undisclosed fine for throwing the glove that hit home plate umpire Manny Gonzalez.

Broxton is appealing the decision.

The 29-year-old was upset when a borderline pitch from Yankees starter J.A. Happ was called strike three by Gonzalez to end the second inning. 

Gonzalez was struck by one of Broxton's batting gloves as the Mariners right fielder threw them behind himself as he was walking away from home plate. The 29-year-old was immediately ejected from the game and replaced by Mallex Smith. 

The Mariners added Broxton to their roster on July 30 after he was designated for assignment by the Baltimore Orioles. He also played 34 games for the New York Mets at the start of 2019. 

In 56 games with three teams, Broxton is hitting.184/.252/.327 with six homers and 14 RBI. 

Seattle Mariners utility man Tim Beckham has been suspended 80 games without pay after testing positive for Stanozolol, a violation of Major League Baseball's policy on performance-enhancing drugs.

The Major League Baseball Players Association is releasing the following statement on behalf of Tim Beckham: pic.twitter.com/lOVBtgkTgC

— MLBPA Communications (@MLBPA_News) August 6, 2019

Seattle has 48 games remaining this year, meaning Beckham will be ineligible for the first 32 games of the 2020 regular season.

Drafted first overall by the Tampa Bay Rays in 2008, Beckham has appeared in the big leagues in parts of six different seasons. He owns a slash line of .249/.302/.431 for his career.

The 29-year-old was hitting .237/.293/.461 with 15 home runs, 21 doubles and 47 RBI in 88 games this season. Though the majority of his plate appearances came against right-handers (.218 average), the right-handed-hitting Beckham hit .280 against left-handers this season.

Interestingly, he had accomplished a pair of rare feats in 2019:

Eric Sogard homered in each of his first two home plate appearances with the @RaysBaseball.

According to @EliasSports he's the 7th player since 2000 to homer in their first two home PAs with a team.

He joins Tim Beckham as the only players to do so this season. pic.twitter.com/3qyqQ06ASx

— ESPN Stats & Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) August 4, 2019

DJ LeMahieu is the 2nd player this season with multiple HR in a game off Chris Sale, joining Tim Beckham on Opening Day.

Before this year, Sale hadn't allowed a multi-HR game to a batter since October 2017, when Jose Altuve did it in ALDS Game 1.

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) August 3, 2019

Beckham has proved to be versatile in the field throughout his career, and this season had been no different. He played five different positions for the Mariners in 2019, including all four infield spots.

After spending the first nine-plus years of his professional career within the Rays organization, Beckham has suited up for three different teams since the start of 2017. He had a base salary of $1.75 million this season, per Spotrac, and is eligible for arbitration for the final time this offseason.

Though losing Beckham's versatility will affect Seattle's depth chart all around, it will hardly affect the team's playoff chances. The Mariners (47-67), who sit 18 games out of a playoff spot, have long been on their way to extending their postseason drought to 18 years, which would be the longest active streak in the four major North American sports.

Nobody's perfect. 

But Seattle Mariners pitcher Mike Leake came really close Friday night. 

The 31-year-old entered the top of the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Angels on the verge of completing Major League Baseball's first perfect game since 2012, but Angels rookie second baseman Luis Rengifo played spoiler with a lead-off single.

CGSO.

What a night for Mike Leake. 💪 #TrueToTheBlue pic.twitter.com/Rte70YVrAa

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) July 20, 2019

According to MLB director of baseball research and development Daren Willman, and to put into perspective just how close Leake was, Rengifo's ground ball had an expected batting average of .140. 

Coincidentally, the 2012 perfecto was authored by the Mariners' Felix Hernandez.

On top of that, the Angels threw a combined no-hitter in a 13-0 defeat of the Mariners last Friday night. Leake was the losing pitcher a week ago, failing to make it out of the first inning and allowing seven runs on eight hits, while Rengifo fielded the final out to make the Angels' no-no official.

While Leake's outing didn't finish among the Angels' or Hernandez's, it was still his best start of the season as he posted a complete-game shutout with six strikeouts, one hit and one walk in a 10-0 victory.  

Mike Leake took a perfect game into the 9th inning for the @Mariners tonight.

Afterwards, he joined #MLBTonight to talk about his complete game performance. pic.twitter.com/5m2NBDSirM

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) July 20, 2019

According to Angels communications manager Matt Birch, Rengifo's single kept L.A.'s streak of not being no-hit since Sept. 11, 1999, active—the third-longest such streak in the majors behind the Oakland A's and Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals. 

In the grand scheme of this season, this result has no bearing on the 40-60 Mariners. However, Leake needed the boost.

The right-hander snapped a three-game losing streak and is now 8-8. Entering Friday's start, Leake held a 4.60 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and an American League-leading 1.4 walks per nine innings in 19 starts. 

Edwin Encarnacion can hit a baseball.

He's proved that by smashing 32 or more home runs in every completed season since 2012. This year, at age 36, he's cleared the fence an American League-leading 21 times in 65 games for the Seattle Mariners, which puts him on pace for roughly 48 homers.

That's...let's do the math...a lot. It'd also be a career high.

Over the winter, Encarnacion was dealt from the Cleveland Indians to the Mariners in a three-team swap that involved the Tampa Bay Rays and was largely about dumping salary for the Tribe. Before that, he spent significant time with the Cincinnati Reds and Toronto Blue Jays.

Wherever he's gone, he's raked.

Among active players, his 401 dingers leave him behind only the Los Angeles Angels' Albert Pujols (644 home runs) and the Detroit Tigers' Miguel Cabrera (468 home runs). 

Between 2012 and Wednesday, he's hit an MLB-leading 284 home runs, with Nelson Cruz (265) and Mike Trout (253) checking in at Nos. 2 and 3, respectively. During the same stretch, he leads both leagues with 813 RBI. Cruz is second with 716. Pujols is fourth (688), Cabrera is fifth (678) and Trout is sixth (676).

Pujols. Cabrera. Trout. Those are Hall of Fame candidates, if not Cooperstown shoo-ins. Encarnacion is squarely in their midst, even if he was grossly underrated as far back as 2014 and is rarely—if ever—name-dropped as their worthy peer.

Here he is cracking two taters in one inning this April, if you require visual evidence:

Two homers in ONE inning for Edwin! 🦜🦜 pic.twitter.com/FsyUuOvznm

— MLB (@MLB) April 9, 2019

"I never expected to get to this point," he told reporters after reaching the 400-homer plateau. "The only thing I can do is keep working. Keep working hard, keep focused and do the best I can to help my team win."

Soon, he might be helping a different team win.

Despite a hot start, the Mariners are buried in last place in the American League West at 29-42. Trading Encarnacion and a portion of the $21.7 million he's owed in 2019 (with a $5 million buyout in 2020) ought to be a top priority.

Encarnacion is limited defensively but has capably played 45 games at first base this season, which means he could attract the interest of both National League and American League clubs.

As Shannon Drayer of 710 ESPN put it:

"When Kyle Seager went down with a hand injury, the first base glove was put on and Edwin planted himself there. Despite having played just 22 games in the field last season and having spent an offseason preparing to be a DH, he quickly established that, with Ryon Healy at third, he was the best defensive option at first. The more you watched him the more you realized he was fundamentally sound. What’s more, he’s looked like he has enjoyed playing the field."

To cite one NL example, the Milwaukee Brewers could replace scuffling first baseman Jesus Aguilar with the Mariners' masher. The Colorado Rockies are another interesting suitor given their Mile High altitude, which would only enhance Encarnacion's thump.

On the AL side, the Rays and Houston Astros make a ton of sense. The Rays rank 17th with 89 home runs as they wrestle for supremacy in the AL East. The 'Stros, meanwhile, could use a bat to augment first baseman Yuli Gurriel and his .683 OPS. Both have the MiLB chips to bring Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto to the table.

We could go on. Financial concerns aside, any contender could use Encarnacion's bat in the middle of its lineup.

"When he hits it, it just sounds different," 26-year-old Mariners first baseman/designated hitter Daniel Vogelbach told reporters of his counterpart. "... He's done it for a long time, and he does it every single year." 

Even in his late 30s, Encarnacion can hit a baseball. He's proved it for a decade and change, and he belongs on a list of this generation's greatest sluggers.

If you didn't believe it before, it's time to believe it now. 

         

All statistics and contract information current as of Wednesday and courtesy of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.

Seattle Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger is going to miss time after suffering a ruptured testicle during Thursday's loss to the Houston Astros.

Per MLB.com's Greg Johns, Haniger was placed on the 10-day injured list after being hit by his own foul ball. 

There was no indication at the time Haniger had done much harm. The injury occurred during the third inning, but he remained in the game until the ninth inning before Mac Williamson came on as a pinch hitter. 

A typical foul ball will bounce off the ground and hit a player somewhere on their body. Haniger managed to make contact with the pitch from Justin Verlander, but he merely redirected its path from the catcher's glove to his groin. 

Under similar circumstances, St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina missed one month last season after having emergency surgery when Chicago Cubs star Kris Bryant hit a foul ball that hit him in the groin. 

Haniger had a high expectations in 2019 following an All-Star appearance last year. The 28-year-old has struggled to repeat that performance with a .220/.314/.463 slash line in 63 games. 

The Seattle Mariners are "trying to trade everyone" as the July 31st non-waiver trade deadline approaches, a rival source told MLB Network's Jon Heyman.

Among the players reportedly on the block are designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion, pitcher Mike Leake, second baseman Dee Gordon, first baseman Ryon Healy and infielder Tim Beckham.

This comes on the same day that ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Seattle is "nearing a deal" to send three-time All-Star Jay Bruce to the Philadelphia Phillies, though a deal is not "imminent."

As their postseason drought was extended to 17 seasons with an 89-73 performance in 2018, the Mariners spent the offseason wheeling and dealing while appearing to commit to a rebuild. They traded away veterans Robinson Cano, Edwin Diaz, James Paxton, Mike Zunino, Jean Segura and Carlos Santana while bringing in pieces for the future.

However, in order to complete some of those transactions, they also had to absorb high-paid players like Bruce and Encarnacion. As a result, the team figures to be one of the most active teams this summer.

Seattle used a record-setting home run streak to jump out to a 13-2 start this season. However, the club has gone just 12-33 since, dropping to last place in the American League West, 14 games out of first.

With that, trading season has apparently begun.

It should come as no surprise that the Mariners are open for business. Back in February, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times wrote the club was looking to trade Encarnacion after acquiring him during the offseason.

The veteran players are well aware that they could be dealt at any moment. Per the Seattle Times' Larry Stone, general manager Jerry Dipoto made it clear to his players that the organization is "moving toward a younger roster":

"Players generally do well when you tell them the truth. Jay understood. I said the great likelihood is you'll be on our club to start the season and you'll play left field, and if we go out and acquire another left fielder (as they did with Domingo Santana), we feel confident in your ability to move over to first base, occasional right field and DH duties.

"And as this has all come together, same way with Edwin Encarnacion. I told him, we are moving toward a younger roster. He knows what we're doing. We've just been very honest with him. I think it would not shock him if we get to a point where we move him. If it’s in the spring or during the season, it will not surprise him because we've been honest with him."

With the calendar flipping to June, there are less than two months until the non-waiver trade deadline. And with the Mariners' recent struggles, Dipoto and Co. appear to be ready to continue rebuilding as teams around the league look to bolster their rosters for a playoff push.

The Seattle Mariners announced that starting pitcher Felix Hernandez was placed on the 10-day injured list with a strained right shoulder Sunday.

The news of Hernandez's injury comes one day after he became the 36th pitcher in MLB history to record 2,500 career strikeouts. 

At 33 years, 33 days of age, Hernández is the 6th-youngest pitcher in Major League history to reach 2,500 strikeouts. He is behind only Nolan Ryan (31.101), Walter Johnson (31.197), Pedro Martinez (32.221), Tom Seaver (32.287) and Bert Blyleven (33.000).

— Mariners PR (@MarinersPR) May 11, 2019

Despite the historic moment, Hernandez surrendered seven runs to the Boston Red Sox in 2 1/3 innings during the Mariners' 9-5 loss on Saturday. For the season, Hernandez has a 1-4 record with 34 strikeouts and a 6.52 ERA in eight starts. "He has allowed 14 runs in his last two starts over 7 1/3 innings and is 0-4 since winning his first start of the season," according to ESPN.

Hernandez, who has spent his entire career with the Mariners since his 2005 debut, was one of the best starters in MLB during his prime seasons. His performance has dropped off in recent years amid injury issues and concerns about a dip in velocity.

The 33-year-old made at least 30 starts in 10 consecutive seasons beginning in 2006. That number fell to 25 in 2016 and 16 in 2017. He made two trips to the then-disabled list in the latter season because of shoulder problems. He bounced back to appear in 29 games last year.

Marco Gonzales should slot into the role as staff ace, while Roenis Elias could shift from the bullpen to fill the void if it becomes a long-term absence for King Felix.

All told, while Hernandez has still enjoyed flashes of his old brilliance over the past few years, it's unclear whether he can get back to that level for an entire season given his results to start 2019. Every injury setback makes the journey back toward the top of the sport a little tougher.

Dee Gordon was hit by a fastball thrown up and in by New York Yankees pitcher J.A. Happ on Thursday night, and the Seattle Mariners second baseman was still fuming after the game. 

"I was pissed off," Gordon said, according to the Seattle Times' Ryan Divish. "It was the second time he threw up by my head. You've got to get the ball down. If you can't throw that pitch, don't throw it. I got a family. You need to get the ball, you need to get the ball [expletive] down. That's twice."

The pitch was one of two inside fastballs thrown Gordon's way in the plate appearance, with the second one drilling his wrist and causing him to leave the game in the third inning. MLB.com's Greg Johns reported that he will undergo a CT scan on Friday in Boston to gauge the damage done to his wrist.

Initial X-rays on Gordon's wrist were inconclusive, per Divish.

Happ pitched five innings without allowing a run, and New York won 3-1. While speaking with reporters, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he thought Happ's four-seamer—the type of pitch that hit Gordon—"was the best it's been" (h/t YES Network).

Four-seamer the best it's been? Yeah, J.A. Happ agrees with the skipper. #YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/wamDdyeEfM

— YES Network (@YESNetwork) May 10, 2019

The Mariners will begin their three-game series with the Red Sox in Boston on Friday night. They will likely have to make roster moves before then with Gordon ailing to some degree and infielder Dylan Moore, who came in for Gordon, nursing a wrist injury from a hit-by-pitch Wednesday night.

In 2019, Gordon has 42 hits, 19 RBI, three home runs and a .304 batting average. The two-time All-Star has appeared in 38 games and started at second base in 37 of them. 

The Mariners are 20-20.  

Seattle Mariners second baseman Dee Gordon suffered a wrist injury that forced him to leave Thursday's game against the New York Yankees early. 

The injury occurred when he was hit by a pitch from J.A. Happ:

Dee Gordon hit on the right wrist by J.A. Happ. Looked like a bad one. Gordon leaves the game.

— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) May 9, 2019

Dee Gordon drilled on the wrist by a pitch and is in big pain. Leaving the game. This doesn't look good.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) May 9, 2019

Gordon entered the day hitting .304 with 10 stolen bases so far this season.

The veteran has generally avoided serious injuries in his career and will hope the latest issue also turns out to be minor. Even with a stint on the disabled list last year with a fractured toe, he still played in at least 140 games for the fourth time in five years. 

The only exception came in 2016 when he was suspended for violating the league's policy on performance-enhancing drugs.

The 31-year-old remains an impact player on the field and increased his versatility last year in his first season with the Mariners, learning how to play the outfield for the first time in his career.

He spent time in center field, at second base and at shortstop during the 2018 season while hitting .268 with 30 stolen bases.

Gordon can still help in a lot of ways, but the latest injury takes a key hitter out of the Mariners lineup and puts more pressure on the rest of the offense until he is healthy. Utility player Dylan Moore could potentially fill in at second base while the starter is unavailable.

Ichiro Suzuki has accepted a role as an instructor with the Seattle Mariners and the Tacoma Rattlers, the team's Triple-A affiliate.

Per a team press release, Ichiro will maintain his position as a special assistant to the chairman, reporting to Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto:

Some Ichiro news out of Seattle: pic.twitter.com/eOJGrRlxev

— Mark Feinsand (@Feinsand) April 30, 2019

Ichiro, 45, retired on March 21 after 28 professional seasons: nine in Nippon Professional Baseball and 19 in Major League Baseball.

He finished his professional career with 4,387 hits, and 3,089 occurred in the major leagues. Ichiro won the American League Rookie of the Year and the MVP in 2001 and made 10 straight All-Star Games, all with Seattle.

Ichiro will begin his new role Tuesday prior to the team's home game against the Chicago Cubs.

Seattle currently sports an 18-13 record, which puts the team percentage points behind the 17-12 Houston Astros for first in the American League West.