Heading into the new season, Major League Baseball analysts were talking about how good the Mariners’ pitching was going to be, but all their prediction haven’t panned out as expected

Iwakuma

Aside from Felix Hernandez (6-1, 2.30 ERA), who is pitching brilliantly as usual, the rest of the Mariners’ starting rotation is struggling. All-star Hisashi Iwakuma is often called by baseball pundits one of the best one-two punches in all of baseball pitching. Unfortunately, he has been sidelined since April due to injuries. He is currently on 15-day DL. Over the past three seasons, Iwakuma has gone 38-20 with a 3.07 ERA and a 7.6 SO/9 IP. Missing him in the rotation is clearly hurting the Mariners, as they are currently sitting below .500.

Walker

Taijuan Walker, a player that many believed was going to climb the ladder, has struggled mightily. After a spring training performance that had people from all around the league singing his praises, Walker disappointed many by not being able to carry his spring training success into the regular season.

Walker is just 1-4 in seven starts with a hideous 7.22 ERA. This season he has only pitched one game for more than seven innings. He has pitched five innings or less four times this season, getting roughed up early and being pulled from games. If Walker wants to improve this season, he has to control his pitches better and not fall behind early in games.

Happ

One surprise for the Mariners has been J.A. Happ. Acquired during the off-season from Toronto, Happ has stepped up in Iwakuma’s absence, which is exactly what the Mariners envisioned from him when they got him. In seven starts, Happ has gone 2-1 with a 2.98 ERA, good for the second best ERA on the team amongst starting pitchers. Happ and Hernandez are the only Mariners starters with winning records this season. When Iwakuma comes back from the DL and with experts saying the Mariners might wait until mid-June to bring him back, the hope is Happ can slide into the third spot of the rotation and form a nightmare for opposing teams, especially during the postseason.

The Bullpen

Last season, the Mariners’ bullpen was great, especially down the stretch during their late postseason-push. Between their top five relievers, the highest individual ERA was 3.61 from Charlie Furbush, who had the second most appearances last year.

However, this season has been a different story.

Fernando Rodney, an all-star last season, has struggled with his ERA. Fortunately though, he has only one blown save in 10 opportunities. He’s still saving games, but his ERA early on in the season has doubled from his ERA at the end of last season.

Danny Farquhar, who pitched consistently at the end of last season, is inconsistent this season. He’s already appeared in 17 games with 19 innings pitched, but his ERA has ballooned from 2.66 last year to 4.74 this year. He is having trouble commanding his pitches. In 71 innings pitched last year, Farquhar allowed just five home runs. This season, he has already allowed two.

There have been a couple bright spots from the Mariners’ bullpen this year. Furbush was a workhorse for the Mariners last year, and he’s still is. He’s tied for the most appearances by a Mariners reliever and is posting an ERA of 1.80.

Carson Smith, who appeared in only nine games last season, has an ERA of 1.08 and is tied for the most appearances by a Mariners relief pitcher along with Furbush.

The Mariners have the tools and the talent, but the question is, can they execute?