THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: What's missing from M's DHs? Well, hitting, for one

Jerry Dipoto would tell you it’s very, very early in the season.

And I would agree with him.

It’s foolish to judge the Mariners after 18 games — not in a 162-game season.

Except …

There is a qualification to Jerry’s statement, and it’s fair to point that out.

Plenty of things will happen over the next several months, as the Mariners proved last year by roaring back from 10 games below .500 in June to win 90 games and make the playoffs for the first time in two decades.

But about that qualification …

It’s valid for Scott Servais to ask for patience in the case of second baseman Kolten Wong, who has a long and decent resume in the major leagues.

Over the full 2023 season, the Mariners can fairly expect Wong to become something more than a .106 hitter.

Wong has a career batting average of .259 over 11 seasons, won a Gold Glove in 2020 and has a solid (if not spectacular) 22 WAR.

If Dipoto, who traded clubhouse pariah Jesse Winker to Milwaukee for Wong, asks for patience for his second baseman …

That’s fair.

Kolten has been hopeless so far, but yes, waiting on him to relax and hit a little is STILL fair.

ON THE other hand, accusations from grumpy fans that the Mariners are cheap, and kept their wallet closed despite a young, exciting playoff team…

Dipoto’s rationale on that one, though, is as weak as tissue paper.

The Mariners opened this season of incredible promise with career utility infielder Tommy La Stella (.071) as the designated hitter.

As warning signs go, that was a blinding red light with a screaming siren.

Moving on …

They’ve used other notable boppers in the DH role, guys like backup catchers Cooper Hummel (.095) and Tom Murphy (.050), along with outfielder AJ Pollock (.125).

Following the Monday night loss to Milwaukee, Seattle has the lowest OPS (on-base plus slugging) from its DH spot in the major leagues (.309).

It’s a given that the M’s also had a bottom number at second base – Wong with a couple cameos from Sam Haggerty — at an almost invisible .260.

Those two OPS numbers were the lowest pair of any positions in major league baseball.

Back to Dipoto for a minute …

As I said, it’s fair for him to ask an increasingly unhappy fan base to wait a while on Wong.

But for the motley crew of designated hitters — who have been almost exclusively designated outs?

No.

The irony here is that Pollock — one of just two free agent signings (along with reliever Trevor Gott) — essentially was brought aboard to platoon in left field and give Jarred Kelenic an easier road to unlocking his vast potential.

Meanwhile, Kelenic is hammering line drives all over the place, looking every bit as though he’s tapped into all that talent.

Pollock might not even be needed as a regular left fielder.

The result of all this is that in game after game, the Mariners’ top six hitters look like a pennant-contending bunch.

However, then there are automatic outs with Wong and whoever is the DH, before J.P. Crawford (.250, .391 on-base percentage) produces professional at-bats in the No. 9 spot.

IT’S HARD to give the Mariners a pass in putting together this offense.

If Tommy La Stella is your DH on Opening Day, you had to know that you haven’t added any punch to the real talent that comprises about two-thirds of the lineup.

Understand something here …

The Mariners are not poor.

According to a Forbes magazine report, Seattle led baseball with an operating income of $85.8 million in 2022, while enjoying the largest year-over-year franchise valuation growth at 29 percent.

Forbes noted that the Mariners have the 13th-most valuable franchise in baseball at $2.2 billion.

And yet, Seattle’s 2023 payroll still ranks 18th at $129.8 million (per Spotrac), well shy of the league average of $148.7 million.

For the record, I agree with Dipoto and his bosses that the way to build and sustain a baseball club is through what he calls DDT (draft, develop and trade).

Splashing monster bucks on insane contracts rarely works for the long term.

That’s been proven.

YOU FEEL, from looking at their everyday lineup, that the Mariners have taken their distaste for free agency a little too far.

Gott arrived on a one-season deal for $1.2 million, and Pollock got $7 million for a year.

Perhaps …

For once, Jerry wasn’t busy enough in his favored trade market to make up for the barren free agency class.

Whichever the case, sure, we’ll hide behind the couch and wait on Wong to hit some balls hard.

But the rest of this offense?

Other than the “Solid Seven,” it’s a gang of utility players.

We could wait forever on this bunch, and get zilch.

Dipoto knows that, obviously, and he HAS to go find somebody besides Tommy La Stella and Cooper Hummel to give the DH role some clout.

Don’t wait too long, Jerry.

And if you have to make a trade and inherit a fatter contract than you’d like …

Too bad, at this point.

Please don’t waste a great season.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”