Jerry Dipoto isn’t going anywhere.
Now what?
On Thursday, Times beat writers Ryan Divish and Adam Jude reported that the Mariners’ ownership group has decided to bring back Dipoto — its president of baseball operations — “for the 2025 season and possibly beyond.”
That’s despite Dipoto assembling a squad that will likely fail to achieve postseason aspirations for a second consecutive season, even after holding a 10-game lead over the Houston Astros in a weakened American League West.
It’s despite the Mariners firing ninth-year manager (and longtime Dipoto confidante) Scott Servais on Aug. 22 with 34 games to go, which supposedly sent a message about the franchise’s determination to contend.
It’s despite Dipoto’s string of undeniably damning free-agent acquisitions — Mitch Garver, Luis Urias, Kolten Wong, AJ Pollock, Tommy La Stella, etc., roster-building botches one and all.
It’s despite Dipoto’s 2024 Mariners being historically hitless — leading MLB in strikeouts (1,422) while ranking 25th in on-base percentage (.304), 28th in OPS (.670), 29th in slugging percentage (.365) and last in doubles (189) and batting average (.217). Meanwhile, the majors’ premier starting rotation grows older by the day.
It’s despite the myriad ways these Mariners have stumbled down the stretch — like the 19-24 record in the second half, or the 35-41 tally against losing teams, or the 15 losses in their past 19 one-run games (fun differential be damned).
It’s despite Dipoto providing tone-deaf ammunition for frustrated fans, saying last October that “I can’t tell you what year we’re going to win the World Series. I can tell you that if we win 54 percent of our games over the course of a decade, you’re going to play in the World Series.”
This season, the middling 71-70 Mariners aren’t even winning that much.
Despite all of that and more, Dipoto — as well as general manager Justin Hollander and most of the top members of the baseball operations staff — apparently are staying put.
Which begs a concerning question:
Why should fans continue to care?
Why should they believe the 2025 season will bring anything better? Why should they shut their mouths, pay their money and accept the status quo? Why keep faith in a franchise with one playoff appearance in the past two-plus decades, that (read: financially) refuses to strive for more?
It’s true: this is not purely a Dipoto problem. The Mariners’ ownership group, including chairman John Stanton, have not provided the resources to pay for playoff success. After catcher Cal Raleigh implored the team to make meaningful acquisitions last offseason, Seattle’s budget largely stagnated instead. The team’s payroll ($147.5 million) sits 16th in MLB this season, according to spotrac.com, after slotting 18th in 2023 ($127.7 million) and 21st in 2022 ($115.8 million).
On social media, many fans have understandably implored Stanton and Co. to sell the team.
But the fans can’t fire the owners.
And, by the way, when it comes to winning? Payroll isn’t everything.
As it stands, four of the six teams positioned to make the playoffs in the American League — the Orioles, Guardians, Twins and Royals — have a more modest payroll than the Mariners.
Granted, unlike the Orioles, the Mariners didn’t tank for four consecutive seasons to find affordable success. But Cleveland (six playoff appearances since 2013) and Tampa Bay (five consecutive playoff appearances, including a World Series berth, entering 2024) are proof it’s possible to win without simply outspending everyone.
(Heck, even the A’s have made nine playoff appearances since 2002. And despite a payroll less than half the size of the Mariners, they’re 24-18 since the All-Star break.)
Which doesn’t mean, by the way, that Mariners ownership shouldn’t make a more meaningful financial commitment to fix a flawed roster. They owe that to the fans who keep coming back — despite two decades spent wandering the desert, searching for a drop to drink. They also owe it to Dan Wilson, the franchise legacy and first-time manager.
But for Dipoto, for Hollander, for the entire organization, the payroll excuse — while legitimate — does not excuse everything else.
Plainly, Dipoto has produced one playoff appearance in nearly 10 seasons in Seattle. And even after two wins over the 61-80 Athletics, his team is crawling to the conclusion of an unacceptable campaign.
So it’s difficult to identify what he’s done to earn another opportunity — to convince ownership that, this time, the puzzle pieces will fit; that the last year-plus of Mariners baseball has been one big blip, and not a wrecking ball to their winning window.
Jerry Dipoto isn’t going anywhere.
Now what?
If I had to guess, you’ll see more of the same.
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