The Mariners should cross the idea of a second base upgrade off their offseason list. Cole Young’s selection as an AL Gold Glove finalist doesn’t settle every argument about his game. The numbers are a bit too stubborn to do that. It does, however, settle the question that matters most to the Mariners. They have a lock for their everyday second baseman for 2027.
Young played 157 games and logged over 1,350 innings at second base, leading every AL player at the position in both categories. He also led the group with 223 putouts, 397 assists and a .990 fielding percentage.
He’s given the M’s an entire season of evidence that they don’t need another placeholder, platoon guy or veteran insurance just for the keystone. Young took the job, held it down and turned himself into one of three finalists for the award.
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) October 14, 2026
Cole Young Gives the Mariners Rare Certainty
The Mariners have plenty of problems to solve before Opening Day. Second base does not need to be one of them. Every dollar spent protecting against a Young collapse is a dollar unavailable for a more pressing weakness. Young’s finalist nod should give the front office permission to direct its attention anywhere else.
He earned that confidence through availability as much as his performance on the field. Defensive value tends to get reduced to highlight reels, but somebody still has to take the field every day and convert the routine play without doing too much. Young committed six errors across 626 chances at second base. Defensive Runs Saved credited him with 16 runs saved, tied for eighth among all major league defenders. That’s pretty sturdy for a Mariners player who has yet to turn 24.
He also added 17 home runs and 66 RBIs while playing 160 games overall. His .693 OPS leaves plenty more to be desired, but the Mariners no longer have to wonder whether his bat can survive a full schedule while he handles second base.
Mariners Must Help Cole Young Fix One Defensive Weakness in 2027
The Gold Glove finalist label is definitely not an end to Young’s defensive development. If you take a look at Statcast, it offers a rather loud reason to keep working.
Outs Above Average graded Young at -5 at second base, leaving him tied for 35th among 42 qualifying players at the position. Most of that damage came on lateral plays toward first base, where Baseball Savant assessed him at -6 OAA. But for those who go off the eye test, it was obvious Young wasn’t the smoothest when playing to his left.
That doesn’t erase the 16 DRS, the .990 fielding percentage or the mountain of innings. But it does identify the next assignment. A weakness this specific is useful. The Mariners are not staring at a vague defensive problem and hoping another year of experience magically repairs it. They know where to work on the lost outs.
The larger metric disagreement remains pretty absurd. According to one respected system, Young was among baseball’s most valuable defenders. According to another, he was below average. Apparently, evaluating second-base defense now requires a philosophy degree and a willingness to choose sides. Lucky for us, we don’t have to choose one.
Both measurements can inform the Mariners without dictating the same conclusion. Young’s 16 DRS explains why he became a Gold Glove finalist. His negative OAA shows why the organization should keep pushing him. One number validates the season while the other draws up the homework. And neither of them creates a vacancy on the roster.
Winning the Gold Glove would be a terrific finish to Young’s year. Losing to Michael Massey or Chase Meidroth wouldn’t change what he or Seattle learned across the 2026 season. Young can handle the position, withstand a full schedule and contribute enough on both sides of the ball to remain in the lineup.
The Mariners have bigger needs and only so many resources available to address them. Second base no longer belongs in that pile.
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