Mariners: 3 takeaways from tough series versus the Tigers

A breakdown of the three-game series loss against the Tigers at T-Mobile Park, which produced more doubt than confidence for the Mariners.

Well, that didn’t go quite as planned did it? Following an opening series versus the Athletics where everyone was still finding themselves and getting up to speed, the Seattle Mariners continued to struggle to get going against the Detroit Tigers.

This was a good opportunity to see how the Mariners measured up against a team which finished above them in the standings last year and qualified for the playoffs. Unfortunately for everyone concerned in Seattle, it was more of the same against an opponent which beat them five out of the six times they played each other in 2024.

Even at this extremely early stage of the season every game is important, especially when you consider two consecutive seasons of the Mariners falling just one agonizing game short of a playoff spot. Let’s delve into the three-game series versus the Tigers, which the visitors took 2-1.

1) Emerson Hancock has a disastrous 2025 debut

There was plenty riding on Emerson Hancock this season, with expectations only raised after George Kirby’s shoulder inflammation issue sent him to the Injured List. His spring training numbers were not particularly impressive, but also not terrible, and it was still hoped he could begin to justify why the Seattle Mariners selected him sixth overall in the 2000 MLB draft.

Instead, Hancock couldn’t have picked a worse time to have his poorest ever start at the Major League level. Pure and simple, his 2025 regular season debut on Monday night was a complete disaster, as he provided the nucleus for the Detroit Tigers to win their first game of the year.

The 25-year-old was lit up by the Tigers lineup, as he allowed seven hits, a walk and six earned runs, while producing no strikeouts. He was only able to record two outs before Mariners manager Dan Wilson decided to take him out of the game.

As a result of the self-capitulation by Hancock, the Mariners found themselves down 6-0 midway through the first inning. They did gamely fight back and pull to within 9-6 in the bottom of the ninth, but in the end the team was undone by the early damage.

Hancock doesn’t shy away

If nothing else, at least the righty didn’t attempt to make any excuses when speaking to the media postgame. He said:

“(I’m) super frustrated, just because I didn’t do my part in helping us get a win. I kind of put us (in) too big of a hole early on, and I just didn’t give us a chance at all, especially after getting off to such a bad start. I’ve got to execute better. I have to find a way to get out of that inning. That way we can get out and maybe get some more length in that game and maybe get into a rhythm and settle in later, but I didn’t do my job.”

In an interesting turn of events, Hancock was subsequently optioned to Triple-A Tacoma on Tuesday, with the Mariners selecting the contract of southpaw Jhonathan Díaz in a corresponding move. Originally slated to make his next start on Sunday, Hancock now cannot be recalled for 10 days unless there is an injury.

Certainly it will be intriguing to see what the Mariners decide to do with Hancock in general, prior to whenever Kirby does finally return. (As things stand, somewhere between late April and early May.) In any event, he still has plenty of work to do, to avoid a still quiet but slowly building narrative that he will never live up to his potential.

2) Mariners not taking advantage of home field

Admittedly this takeaway is as much of a general one for the season as a whole to date, as well as the Tigers series specifically, in just looking at the Mariners’ results so far at T-Mobile Park. If a team is going to contend and make noise come playoff time, positive home results are paramount to any success.

Notorious for starting slowly in recent years, the Mariners theoretically held an advantage in 2025 by playing 13 of their first 16 games at home, including seven straight to open this season. However, the team has dropped the ball by beginning just 3-4 in Seattle, including losing two of three versus the Tigers.

Unfortunately for everyone concerned, the offense was the number one culprit during these first seven games. Yes, we entirely appreciate that it’s still extremely early, but until proven otherwise, the doubts will remain just based off how unproductive the lineup was for the majority of last season.

Still unsettling no matter the sample size

In this respect, the small sample size to begin 2025 is at least a little unnerving. Ahead of Thursday’s slate of games, the Mariners are ranked 29th in batting average, 23rd in OPS, fifth for most strikeouts and — most importantly — 26th in runs. (Albeit, scoring is impacted slightly by the differing amounts of games teams have played.)

There has been plenty of talk over the years about how the weather in Seattle during the early months of the season negatively impacts hitting, not helped by the pitcher-friendly confines of T-Mobile Park. One of the main counter-arguments to this though is that the opposition also has to deal with these same conditions, and yet they have done better so far with the Athletics and Tigers combining to outscore the Mariners 29-18.

In fairness though, this does allude to the pitching not keeping up their end of the bargain either, although they do not deserve as much criticism. Overall, we do still have hope for the offense, especially when you consider what they did under Wilson when he took over last season during August, but for now — fair or not — concerns will remain.

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3) That’s more like it in the series finale

The least we can do is end on a positive note, just as the Mariners did in their series finale against the Tigers. Facing the prospect of being swept, they were able to save face by at least grabbing one victory from the three-game set, with a tense 3-2 win on Wednesday afternoon.

Beginning with the offense, just the basics of three runs off six hits doesn’t sound particularly impressive. However, when you consider they all came off of Tarik Skubal in 5.2 innings — along with three walks — it suddenly sounds a lot better.

Last season saw Skubal win the AL Cy Young after leading the Majors in WAR and strikeouts, while also pacing the AL in ERA, ERA+ and FIP. However, the Mariners bats did what it took to make him look human in the series finale, although admittedly this was helped by a mistake the Tigers made in the field that contributed towards scoring two runs.

The Rock answers the call

Of course no matter what the offense did, it still comes back to the basics of what we said about only accruing three runs and needing help elsewhere. In this respect the pitching was truly sublime, as Luis Castillo went 7.0 innings and looked more like the pitcher who has been named an All-Star on three occasions.

When it was all said and done, Castillo allowed five hits, a couple of walks and two runs, while striking out five. He then turned the ball over to Gabe Speier, who pitched a straightforward 1-2-3 inning in the eighth.

A nervy ending for Mariners fans

Of course this wouldn’t be the Mariners if they didn’t cause some angst within the fan base, which is exactly what Andrés Muñoz unintentionally did in the bottom of the ninth. He walked the first two batters and then allowed a one-out single to load the bases.

However, in the very definition of teamwork, Muñoz combined with Dylan Moore and Mitch Garver to create a force out of Colt Keith at home plate. Muñoz then struck out Zach McKinstry, to secure the win and his third save of the season.

Postgame, Wilson was delighted with how the team played as a whole, but understandably took time to praise Castillo particularly. He said:

“I’ve got to hand it to the Rock, just a really gutty performance today when we really needed it. Seven strong and just really handled that lineup very well, from the first pitch all the way through. Just an outstanding effort and gave us what we needed.”

Now the Mariners have a day off before beginning a three-game series in San Francisco on Friday afternoon, with Bryce Miller taking the mound against the Giants. It will be interesting to see how the offense fares against nine-time All-StarJustin Verlander, even though he might no longer be at the same level which won him three Cy Youngs.

What stood out for you most from the series versus the Tigers? Further, how would you sum up the Seattle Mariners’ season to date as a whole? Let us know in the comments section below.