It’s been almost a year since the Mariners acquired Randy Arozarena, and he’s finally made himself at home.
The All-Star left fielder, who was traded by the Tampa Bay Rays on July 25, smashed six home runs in seven games last homestand, hitting .346 with a 1.038 SLG. He ranks sixth in the American League with a 1.006 OPS since June 7 and now has 14 home runs this season.
“I feel good,” Arozarena said before Saturday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates. “I think the confidence has always been there, but I feel good being able to help the team and be able to produce on the field.”
Arozarena, 30, has steadily improved his performance to recover from a rocky start to the season. He had his best offensive month in June, hitting .294 with a .854 OPS. Arozarena raised his average by more than 80 points after hitting a low of .211 with a .727 OPS in April.
The Cuban Mexican has demonstrated his ability to spray the ball anywhere over the wall, hitting two of those six homers to center field, two to right and two to left.
“It’s big,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said after Arozarena’s opposite-field homer on Friday. “It proves to him that he can wait on it and drive it anywhere, and he can drive it out of any part of the ballpark. As a hitter, that only makes you better.”
Arozarena’s home run to left field on Sunday earned the Mariners a 1-0 win to sweep the Pirates.
“[Arozarena] with that big blow, just that line drive home run, put a really good swing on a pitch and drove it out of the ballpark, very timely for us,” Wilson said.
The right-hander was sent cross-country last season after a rough stretch in Tampa Bay. Over his first 56 games of the 2024 season, Arozarena hit .158 with a .568 OPS, an uncharacteristic performance for the 2023 All-Star.
Despite the 3,000-plus miles between T-Mobile Park and Tropicana Field, Arozarena has adjusted well to life as a Mariner.
“The only difference is the temperature,” Arozarena said. “It gets a little cooler here sometimes than it does back there in Tampa, and other than that, sometimes the trips are a little longer from over here in the Northwest. But nothing big, some of the things we just have to adapt.”
He still plans to spend the winter offseasons under the palm trees of his Tampa home.
“The team, I really like them,” he added about the Mariners. “Good vibes, the ambience that the fans bring. Those guys, the fans, are the ones that really make me enjoy this game. I’ve been really loving it here.”
It was Arozarena’s interactions with Rays fans that made him a beloved player in Tampa Bay.
In May 2023, the Rays created a seating section in left field called “Randy Land.” Everyone in section 141 sported complimentary “Randy Land” T-shirts while hoisting Fathead-type cutouts of Arozarena, Mexican flags and other signs to cheer for the outfielder. The section’s fans received a free drink every time Arozarena hit a home run in a Friday home game.
It wasn’t just the hundreds of balls Arozarena threw to fans or his tendency to respond to the “RAN-DY” chants that made him Tampa’s fan-favorite. It all began with his historic playoff run in 2020 when the rookie hit a record-setting 10 home runs in 20 games and was named the MVP of the American League Championship Series.
A day after the outfielder’s trade was announced, Arozarena was seen saying goodbye to Rays fans and sitting in the “Randy Land” section with his young daughter and teary-eyed wife for the Rays’ 3-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds.
“It was a little sad when I got the news,” Arozarena said. “I mean, I spent four seasons there. I remember when I got the news, I went out there with the fans. They really cared for me at the time I was there. To say goodbye to them. But at the end of the day, you have to understand that this is a business, and you just have to adjust to it and continue going.”
Arozarena is adamant about earning a similar love from Seattle’s fans.
Last Wednesday, he had his first three-game home run streak since the 2020 playoffs when the slugger homered in three straight games of the AL division series.
Arozarena continues to throw balls into the stands during games, with the Mariners recording 17 thrown balls on Sunday in a video posted to X. Arozarena was also captured giving fist bumps during a pitching change.
He even shooed away a ball boy while on deck on Saturday, so he could throw Cal Raleigh’s foul ball over the netting behind home plate.
When Arozarena stepped up to the plate, a young boy a few rows behind him was heard above the crowd’s rhythmic “RAN-DY! RAN-DY!”. The boy was chanting, “Oh, Randy, you’re so fine. You’re so fine, you blow my mind. Hey Randy!”
“It’s been great,” Arozarena said about his relationship with Mariners fans. “It’s similar to over there [in Tampa Bay]. I feel like they’re always out there cheering for me, and I try to reciprocate that in my game and try to interact with them the best I can. I think the fans are just as intense as they are over there [in Tampa Bay], so I’m really enjoying it here. I definitely like when they chant my name.”