The off-season brought a lot to Seattle. Specifically, new faces. Let’s take a look at some of these new faces, and other ingredients the Seattle Mariners need to focus on to cook up a winning team.

1. Adjust to the Shutdown of Taijuan Walker

Taijuan Walker was one of the bigger names tossed around during the off-season, so there was a lot of anticipation for the 21 year old. The pitcher suffered from a inflammation in the bursa of his right shoulder. This is devastating news on a few factors. Even though Seattle has strong pitching in Felix Hernandez and Hisashi Iwakuma, he was going to be a lethal addition to that pitching rotation, and was even said by Tim Brown of Yahoo Sports that he was a more important name for the Mariners than Robinson Cano. Don’t cry too bad about it fantasy baseball players, Walker will be back quicker than you may think. He is definitely someone to have on your team, but don’t snag him too early, and fans, he will still be a factor for the Mariners in hopes of obtaining that AL West title.

2. Speaking of Robinson Cano…

If you didn’t hear about the big signing of Cano in the off-season, you probably have more Nickelback songs on your iPod, than Nickelback. The 31-year-old second baseman signed a 10-year, $240 million contract, and was saying that the Mariners need another bat. Which may come off a tad bit confusing considering, that what Cano’s job is this season. Last season for the Yankees he knocked in 27 runs, 107 RBI’s, and a .314 batting average. That’s why they paid Cano the big bucks. To do his job.

3. Believe in the King

Felix Hernandez is the biggest name on the Mariners roster. Which is no surprised. The 27 year-old had a strong season in 2013. The right-hander had a 12-10 record and a 3.04 ERA. In 204.1 innings pitched, he tallied 216 strikeouts.  Now you know why he is called King Felix. That’s why Seattle paid as much money for him as they did. Fantasy wise, and fan wise, he is a star and will be one of the strongest factors for the Mariners the

4. Logan Morrison Needs to Stay Healthy

I’ve said it once, I’ve said it before. Logan Morrison spends more time on twitter than he does on the field.  Last season was a weak one for him. LoMo only hit for a .242 batting average last season, but has a strong history in the box as well. If he can stay healthy, he could be lethal for that team.

5. Remember the American League West Teams

The Mariners are in a division that is diverse to say the least.  The Texas Rangers and the Oakland Athletics are the two teams at the top of the league. That’s not the surprising factor here  The surprising factor may be the Angels this year. They have a lot less pressure on the team this season now that the dust has settled for that team. Mark Trumbo may be gone, but that simply means the Diamondbacks gained someone, this doesn’t mean the Angels have lost someone. Josh Hamilton should step up to the plate as well as Mike Trout.  The Houston Astros shouldn’t play any harm, but you never know when it comes to America’s Favorite Pastime.