Mariners: 3 takeaways from series win versus Los Angeles Angels

2) Moore shows signs of life with his bat

Last season was a breakout year for Dylan Moore, as he became a versatile and everyday starter. He was particularly effective with his bat, setting career-highs for batting average, on-base percentage and slugging.

As such, there was plenty of optimism surrounding Moore as he prepared for the 2021 campaign. Unfortunately for the Mariners he had struggled with his hitting heading into the Angels series, highlighted by a poor .108 batting average.

The Yorba Linda, Califronia native’s offensive struggles highlighted the M’s overall hitting woes. With the second-worst batting average and third-worst OPS in the Majors entering the Angeles series, they desperately needed better production.

Fortunately for everyone concerned, Moore finally came out of his slump with an excellent series at the plate. The first game was his best, as he had two hits and two RBI in three at-bats, including his second home run of the season in the second inning, to tie the game at 2-2.

However, the 28-year-old’s best moment came in the sixth inning, after he had reached base via a walk. He essentially manufactured a run on his own, going to second on a wild pitch, stealing third and then scoring following an errant throw, to make it 5-3 to Seattle on the way to the win.

Moore was asked about his bounce-back game by the media afterwards. He said:

“It’s no secret I’ve been scuffling the past few weeks and just the game of baseball, it’s tough. Definitely tonight’s a big boost to the confidence and a big boost to how I know I can play at this level, and moving forward it’s definitely a staple.”

Moore’s renewed confidence was on display Saturday with a one-hit, two RBI showing, albeit in a losing effort. He continued his fine form in the series finale, with a crucial two-out RBI single in the bottom of the fourth, in a game where offense was at a premium.

When it was all said and done, the 2015 seventh round draft pick’s four series hits saw his batting average improve to .145. More importantly, his hitting produced five RBI, to go along with two runs.

Of course we appreciate this is only one series. The reality is Moore’s batting average/on-base percentage/slugging slash line is still below even his first year in the Majors in 2019.

You need to start somewhere however, and it’s still early enough in 2021 for Moore to return to the consistency he showed last season with the bat. And if he can, it will do wonders to help the Mariners, who need more regular offense from the bottom of their lineup.

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