Mariners Player Profile: Seth Smith

Mariners outfielder Seth Smith is a primary platoon option against right-handed pitchers in the lineup and has already impressed during the early weeks of his second season in Seattle.

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Seth Smith was added by Mariners former general manager Jack Zdurencik before last season, but he’s a Jerry Dipoto darling. Dipoto wanted to take a more analytical approach to building a lineup with the Mariners when he took over as general manager this offseason, adding players with high on-base percentages, sometimes at the expense of the power numbers that Jack Z seemed so fond of (see Nori Aoki). Smith, who, along with the rest of the Mariners last year, had a ho-hum season, oddly matching his 2014 totals in doubles (31), triples (5) and home runs (12), has a career OBP of .346. However, his on-base percentage tumbled from .367 in 2014 with the San Diego Padres to .330 with the Mariners in 2015.

When Smith came to Seattle last season, the Mariners were his third team in three years. Now, under a new regime, he apparently has found a home. In his 26 games so far with the Mariners this season, Smith is slashing .284/.400/.473 with four home runs. Particularly impressive is his patience at the plate this year. He has walked 14 times and struck out 17 times in 2016.

Mariners manager Scott Servais has religiously used Smith against right-handed pitchers. Smith has slashed .204/.284/.315 in his career against lefties. Hitting second in the lineup for most of his starts, Smith has helped the Mariners race out to 17-11 in the early going, taking first place in the AL West. Smith has struggled so much against lefties that he has only been trusted to hit against them 532 times in his ten-year career. He’s recorded 2831 plate appearances against righties in his career.

Apr 29, 2016; Seattle, WA, USA; Seattle Mariners right fielder Seth Smith (7) hugs starting pitcher Felix Hernandez (34) after hitting a solo-home run against the Kansas City Royals during the sixth inning at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports /

Thanks to the depth that Dipoto has assembled for the Mariners bench this year, Servais can shelve Smith for Franklin Gutierrez or pinch hit Dae-Ho Lee for him late in games, allowing Smith to stay in his comfort zone and continue to hammer right-handed pitchers with his .835 OPS against them in his career. If Smith keeps rewarding his manager with quality at-bats against right handed pitchers, he’ll be a key hitter in the Mariners platoon machine throughout the season.

Seth Smith was traded to the Mariners from San Diego for Brandon Maurer during the 2014 offseason. He has also played for the Oakland A’s and came up with the Colorado Rockies. The Rockies drafted Smith out of the University of Mississippi, where Smith also played football. In fact, he backed up Eli Manning at Ole Miss during his time there.

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Servais has already started to ease up on his strict platoon rules this season, letting Lee stay in the game late against the A’s so he could smash the go-ahead home run on Wednesday. Hopefully he stays strict with Smith to help him build some confidence and do what he does best: hit right-handed pitching.

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