Getting To Know The Seattle Mariners’ September Call-Ups
Jun 9, 2014; St. Petersburg, FL, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Stefen Romero (7) drives in a run on a fielder
Romero is one of the guys we’ve seen before, as he spent way too much time with the Mariners in 2014 after breaking camp with the team. He’s up for depth, and that’s it. If it sounds like I’m suggesting that Romero is an uninteresting player, well, yeah, that’s kind of exactly what I’m getting at. Not saying he’s useless, just… well, let’s take a look at what he’s been up to recently, then!
In 2013, Romero was a league average hitter at high A and AAA. He then got a taste of the majors, where he batted .192/.234/.299 in 190 plate appearances. That terrible, awful line was paired with bad defense, and all said Romero “contributed” -1.1 WAR to a team that missed the playoffs by a game. He cost them a win, they missed the wild card by a win… not that the team had anyone better, just sayin’.
He was a monster in AAA last year, however, and this year he’s been a bit above average, boasting a 117 wRC+ over a full season’s worth of work. He’s going to get some playing time in the outfield, and the best we can hope for is that he is more than the trash pile he was last time he was called up. This is the case of a team looking for a breakthrough that they probably know is unlikely to manifest. He’s not here to do anything particularly fun – he’s just here. And maybe he’ll play more than just a little, if he’s better than expected.
Next: The Utility Guy