Yes, the Mariners improved at the trade deadline

The Seattle Mariners just got better.

Some fans are still upset.

And that aggravation is understandable, given everything else — a franchise defined by a two-decade drought and an Edgar Martinez double; an ownership group that recently prioritized “payroll flexibility” over impact additions; a lineup that has struck out 1,105 times in 108 games, a marathon of mounting whiffs; a teasing hope that a transcendent talent might be one big trade away.

So it’s not enough, for many fans, that the Mariners obviously improved before Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline — adding outfielder Randy Arozarena, first baseman/DH Justin Turner, and relievers Yimi Garcia and JT Chargois in a five-day flurry. It’s not enough that they addressed glaring weaknesses without draining one of MLB’s best farm systems, an admirable balancing act. It’s not enough that they were among baseball’s most aggressive buyers.

Many fans wanted more.

Specifically, they wanted Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr., a 25-year-old first baseman with four consecutive All-Star appearances and a .311/.380/.524 slash line (plus 21 homers and 69 RBI) this season. Or Rays first baseman Yandy Diaz, the 2023 American League batting champion. They wanted the kind of big swing this team so rarely takes, tangible proof for players and fans that this front office is capable of more than half measures.

From that lens, Tuesday’s trade deadline might seem like more of the same — baby steps in an Olympic sprint.

But, yes, the Mariners did get better.

We’ll soon see just how much.

“This year we feel like we’re in a more meaningful position, as opposed to any of the last three years, really. Because this year we have an opportunity to go win a division, and that’s very different than playing for a second or third wild card in a lot of ways,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said Tuesday. “So we took it seriously. I think we went in, and while we might not have been able to do all the things we wanted to do or dreamed of doing, we did the things we could do, and I think we made a meaningful difference in making our team better.”

My take? The Mariners made a quartet of sensible moves that should immediately improve their club. The 29-year-old Arozarena is a former Rookie of the Year and All-Star starter who should become a fan favorite beside Julio Rodriguez for the next two-plus seasons. Turner is a steady vet and proven playoff performer who, unlike so many of his new teammates, strikes out below the league average (17.2%). Garcia (2.53 ERA) and Chargois (1.62 ERA) add dependable depth to a previously teetering bullpen.

On paper, all these moves make sense.

But they alone won’t make the difference.

To edge the Astros and Rangers in the AL West, the Mariners’ existing core must come to life. Rodriguez and J.P. Crawford must return from injury and expediently find their form. Underperforming veterans such as Jorge Polanco (who has exploded for four home runs in his past five games), Mitch Haniger and Mitch Garver must positively contribute down the stretch. One of baseball’s best starting rotations must remain reputably stingy, compiling quality starts. The Mariners did not add enough to allow much margin for error.

When asked about Seattle’s new-look lineup when Rodriguez and Crawford return, Dipoto said: “It’s going to be a heck of a lot more fun than it was before.”

Given the Mariners’ offensive struggles to this point, we’ll believe that when we see it.

Point being: this isn’t Arozarena to the rescue. The trade deadline did not cure all. Though a Guerrero move would have instantly reshaped Seattle’s roster, Dipoto said: “The biggest names that were being floated out there as potentially available … I’m not sure how available they ever really were.”

Guerrero and Diaz stayed put in Toronto and Tampa Bay, respectively.

For fans, that’s understandably frustrating to hear, a tarnished fairy tale. The deadline delivered useful cogs, not franchise faces or instant fixes.

It’ll take everyone to win the West.