Mariners beat writer unleashes on Jesse Winker's 'tired act'

The Seattle Mariners traded for Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez prior to the 2022 season. Most folks believed Winker was the key piece of the deal and that adding Geno was a salary dump on the part of the Cincinnati Reds front office.

It's possible, especially after seeing the way the 2022 season played out, that we have missed the boat with that analysis. Instead, Suarez had a career-year and Winker may well be off the team before next season begins.

According to Mariners beat reported Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times (on the Brock and Salk Podcast), by the end of the season, Winker's act had grown tiring for the Mariners coaching staff and players.

Mariners beat writer unleashes on former Reds' OF Jesse Winker's 'tired act'.

Jesse Winker, who was placed on the IL with a neck injury prior to the postseason, did not make the trip with the team to Toronto and Houston and was not present in the Mariners' dugout during Game 3 of the ALDS in Seattle.

Divish stated during the podcast that he believes some of Winker's teammates were "done with him" and "tired of putting up with him". Divish also said that Winker's lack of preparation, especially defensively, was apparent and quite the opposite of Mitch Haniger.

Divish wrapped up his comments about Winker by concluding that there's bound to be some "hard conversations" during the offseason or perhaps the Seattle Mariners decide to move on from the former Reds outfielder all together.

All of this is probably rather surprising to a Cincinnati Reds fanbase that saw Jesse Winker as nothing but a productive player for their team over the first five years of his career. Winker went to the All-Star Game in 2021 and looked to be a key piece of Reds roster heading into the future.

It was a bit of a shock to most of Reds Country when both Winker and Suarez were dealt to the Mariners in exchange for Jake Fraley, Justin Dunn, and two minor league pitching prospects. But once Cincinnati's front office rolled out its plan for what turned into a full-on rebuild, the trade appears a bit more tolerable in retrospect.

From what we're hearing out of the Pacific Northwest, it could be an interesting offseason for Jesse Winker and the Seattle Mariners. And no, fans should not expect Winker to return to the Cincinnati Reds in 2023.