Mariners: What does the Jean Segura deal say about the future?
By Ben Renner
Heading into this season, the Mariners were yet again expected to win now. When General Manager Jerry Dipoto signed shortstop Jean Segura to a five-year deal, he made it clear they aren’t rebuilding anytime soon.
With Mariners shortstop Jean Segura now locked up for the next five seasons, along with his best friend Robinson Cano, it appears the Mariners are far from selling off their veterans and planning for the future.
That won’t stop them from adding young talent to the organization, as evidenced by their MLB Draft haul last week, but it appears that Dipoto won’t be holding a yard sale for talented Mariners hitters in the near future. Speculating about what Dipoto may or may not be thinking or plotting is dangerous, unpredictable territory, as we’ve seen from him in his tenure in Seattle.
But by signing Segura, who is on the disabled list due to an ankle injury, to a five-year deal and full no-trade clause, Dipoto appears to be committed to keeping the Mariners core of talent together for the foreseeable future.
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Dipoto called Segura “a hit collector,” and he has been as advertised in Seattle so far. Segura was a 20/20 player for Arizona last year, with 20 homers and 33 steals to go along with 102 runs scored and a .319/.368/.499 batting slash. He might not reach the 20-home run plateau for the Mariners this year, but he was hitting .341 before he hurt his ankle this year.
It’s fair to have reservations about a player who wildly outperformed his previous career numbers in 2016, but consider this: Segura is still only 27 years old. He’s in the prime of his career and now he plays with his buddy Cano. He wants to be in Seattle, and that’s a big deal.
Most importantly, for all you stat-heads, his new approach at the plate has clicked. For the right-handed hitter to be teamed up with one of the greatest right-handed hitters of his generation, Edgar Martinez, as hitting coach, it seems Dipoto had the right idea.
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We all know of the disastrous deals the Mariners have struck with good players in the past, Dipoto hasn’t fallen down the mountain yet. We can certainly question a few of his decisions, but signing Segura shouldn’t garner criticism yet.