Donovan Solano Was a Sneakily Good Pickup for the Mariners

The veteran infielder is one of the most consistent part-time players in the game.

Donovan Solano of the San Diego Padres points skyward after hitting a single during the second inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros at Petco Park.
SAN DIEGO, CA - SEPTEMBER 17: Donovan Solano #39 of the San Diego Padres points skyward after hitting a single during the second inning of a baseball game against the Houston Astros at Petco Park on September 17, 2024 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Denis Poroy/Getty Images)

On Monday, the Seattle Mariners signed Donovan Solano to a one-year, $3.5 million contract. He can earn an additional $1 million in performance incentives.

The veteran infielder, 37, isn’t used to this kind of security. It’s mid-January, and he knows exactly where he’ll be when full-squad spring training workouts begin next month.

The preseason was already well underway when Solano signed with the Reds in March 2022. The next year, he signed with the Twins on February 23, the day before spring training games kicked off.

Last winter was even worse for Solano. He waited on the open market all offseason. The Padres were 18 games into the regular season by the time he joined the club on a minor league pact.

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Yet, time and again, Solano has proven why teams were foolish not to snap him up off the open market sooner.

You have to think any team could have had him last winter if they’d been willing to offer a guaranteed contract. No one was biting. He ended up hitting .286 with a 118 wRC+ in 96 contests, appearing in games at all three bases.

Any team would have welcomed that kind of production from a part-time player – especially on a six-figure salary.

This year, the Mariners were smart enough to take advantage of the perennially undervalued utility man.

A Late-Career Breakout

Solano’s career makes for a pretty inspiring story.

Following seven seasons in the Cardinals farm system, he elected free agency after the 2011 campaign. He signed a minor league pact with the basement-dwelling Marlins, finally making his big league debut in May 2012.

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Through his first five seasons from 2012-16, Solano produced a .636 OPS and 77 wRC+ in more than 1,000 trips to the plate. He failed to make it to the majors at all in 2017 or ’18, spending his age-29 and 30 seasons in the minor leagues.

No one could have blamed him if he decided to hang up his hat.

Instead, Solano turned over a new leaf. Playing for the Giants in 2019, he hit .330 with a 116 wRC+ in 81 games. At 31 years old after 15 professional seasons, he finished an MLB campaign with a wRC+ above the league average for the very first time.

Since that 2019 season, Solano has taken more than 1,800 trips to the plate. His 112 wRC+ is 12% better than average. Only 82 players have taken as many or more plate appearances and produced a higher wRC+. That’s fewer than two per team.

Even more impressive, only six players with as many plate appearances as Solano have hit for a higher batting average: Luis Arraez, Freddie Freeman, Trea Turner, Yordan Alvarez, Jose Iglesias, and Xander Bogaerts.

And Solano hasn’t just been productive in the aggregate – he’s been a consistent producer each of the past six years. In that time, he has never had a season with a batting average, OBP, or OPS below league average.

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Despite his advanced age, few players are as safe a bet to provide above-average offense in a part-time role. Even fewer – perhaps no others – were available in free agency for just a one-year, $3.5 million commitment.

How Does He Do It?

What has allowed Solano to become such a consistent hitter in his thirties?

It’s not plus power or plate discipline. Solano has a .119 isolated power over the last six years, about 30% worse than league average. His 6.9% walk rate is also well below par. His 20.2% strikeout rate is solid but far from spectacular.

Rather, Solano thrives thanks to remarkable success on balls in play. His .360 BABIP since 2019 is a number that would look completely unsustainable for most other hitters, but Solano has kept it up for years.

Indeed, after six seasons, it’s been far too long to write any of this off as luck. What’s more, Solano’s .330 xwOBA is right in line with his .334 wOBA. Nothing about this is a fluke.

Solano has an exceptional ability to hit the ball in the perfect launch angle range to make the most of his limited power. Only three players (min. 1,000 BIP) have a better launch angle sweet spot rate over the last six years: Freddie Freeman, Luis Arraez, and J.D. Martinez. None has a higher line drive rate (per Statcast).

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Hitting line drives is a great plan of attack, but few hitters can do so consistently enough to make it work. Solano has proven himself to be one of the rare exceptions.

How Solano Slots Into the Mariners Lineup

It’s no secret the Mariners have been looking for infielders this winter. And if Donovan Solano turns out to be the only one they add, fans have every right to be disappointed.

Still, it’s impossible to deny that Solano makes this team better.

The Mariners finished 12th in MLB with a 104 wRC+ in 2024. Solano has produced a higher wRC+ in five of the last six seasons.

Moreover, Seattle’s hitters particularly struggled against left-handed pitching last year (96 wRC+). Solano has a 122 wRC+ against southpaws dating back to 2019.

Keep in mind, those are park-adjusted numbers. That matters when we’re talking about a player moving to the least hitter-friendly home stadium in the game. Solano might see his raw numbers take a hit at T-Mobile, but in theory, the M’s can count on him for another above-average wRC+.

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Considering the other infield options in Seattle, Solano currently projects to be an everyday player. As things stand, he figures to get most of his reps at second and third base, though he could also platoon with lefty-batting first baseman Luke Raley.

If the Mariners make some more infield additions, manager Dan Wilson will have more flexibility with how he deploys Solano. That would be the ideal situation; all parties are better off if Solano is playing a part-time role.

Despite his valuable versatility and consistent offensive production, teams have overlooked Donovan Solano for years. Finally, the Mariners made the smart decision to sign him before spring training. As long as he doesn’t end up being their biggest addition of the offseason, Solano is a sneakily good pickup for Seattle.