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ESPN MLB Insider Gives Biggest Reason Seattle Mariners Failed in 2026
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- ESPN MLB Insider Gives Biggest Reason Seattle Mariners Failed in 2026
Brady Farkas and Buster Olney speak on the 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast. Subscribe on YouTube.
The Seattle Mariners were eliminated from playoff contention on Thursday afternoon before they ever took the field on Thursday night.
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A Texas Rangers win against the New York Mets sealed the M's fate, and then the M's went out and lost 6-4 against the Los Angeles Angels at T-Mobile Park.
With three games left in the season, the Mariners are just 74-85. It's been a disastrous year for the Mariners, who entered the season as World Series contenders on the heels of getting to the American League Championship Series last season.
Why have the Mariners been so rough this season? You name it. They've done it. Cal Raleigh said as much before the loss on Thursday.
So what's the biggest reason for the Mariners struggles in 2026, and what's the biggest culprit behind them not playing playoff baseball this year?
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We caught up with ESPN MLB Insider Buster Olney on the most recent 'Refuse to Lose Territory' podcast:
"The stars weren't the stars. The stars didn't play like stars.
They got to within a game of the World Series last year, in part, because the stars on their team played like stars. Cal Raleigh had the year that he had. Julio (Rodriguez) was terrific. Bryan Woo , we were talking about him as a sort of edge of the ballot Cy Young candidate, and none of those guys stood out.
Josh Naylor got paid in a big way last fall and rewarded for how good he looked after he joined the Mariners. And, he just wasn't the same this year.
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Look, during the offseason when they signed Rob Refsnyder and they traded for Brendan Donovan . Those are all sort of like ornamental pieces to me.
The big question I think for the 2026 Mariners? The heartbeat of the team, the core of the team, the spine of the team, just never came together where you felt like, okay, 'Cal is good to go. He's going to have a big year.
Julio never took off the way that he did in 2025.'
Bryan Woo was just inconsistent. All the struggles that he had when he was pitching on the road, which were just, that was just crazy that a pitcher that good.
And so they'll all have, I think, as they go home, individual things that they need to work on as they prepare for next year."
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Former M's infielder and current broadcaster Ryon Healy told us that as well last week.
If you're looking for reasons for optimism for the 2027 Mariners, you can certainly find them, and we'll cover them in short order. If you're looking for reasons for negativity, you can certainly find those as well, and we'll cover them too.
For now, the Mariners will finish out the string this weekend against the Angels looking to win their final three games. The Angels need to two losses to hit 100. The Mariners would love to send them there.
