Seattle Mariners Set to Face Fascinating Roster Decisions as Season Winds Down

Luke Raley

Raley is currently on the injured list with back spasms, but he began a rehab assignment with Tacoma on Friday, going 2-for-4. He hit 22 home runs last season, serving as a valuable piece on the M's roster. He's been slowed to only 49 games this season because of injury, and he's only hitting .220.

That said, he's out of options, so when he's ready to come back, he's coming back. The question will be, where does he play? And who does he replace?

The M's acquired Josh Naylor to play first base, so Raley isn't needed there. Dominic Canzone has a hold on right field right now, so he isn't necessarily needed there either, and some combination of Cal Raleigh and Jorge Polanco are playing at designated hitter.

If Raley becomes a bench option, that's fine, but would the team replace Miles Mastrobuoni, who is also left-handed? Mastrobuoni does have an option, but the M's would lose his ability to also play all over the infield. They could jettison Donovan Solano or Dylan Moore, but they'd lose Moore's versatility, and both of them are right-handed options, which Raley doesn't give the team.

***It's also fair to note that the rosters expand to 28-men on Sept. 1, so if the M's were to send Mastrobuoni down, he could come back then.

Victor Robles

Robles has been out since April 7 with a broken bone in his non-throwing shoulder. He's set to begin a rehab assignment on Aug. 12. Assuming he takes the full 20 days allotted to him for a rehab assignment, he'll be eligible to come back on Sept. 1, when the rosters expand.

Would the Mariners stick him back in an every day right field position right away? Or would they platoon him with Canzone? Or, has Canzone shown enough that Robles will head to the bench and be used in a pinch-hitting, pinch-running, defensive replacement capacity?

These are all the questions that Dan Wilson needs to manage moving forward. There's also the question of potentially bringing up prospect Harry Ford or defensive standout Ben Williamson.