PEORIA, Ariz. – On most spring training mornings, the Seattle Mariners’ clubhouse is a relatively subdued place. Music is played at lower decibels while players, many of them wearing headphones, sip coffee, check their phones and quietly prepare for their day.
Professional baseball players are not early risers since most of their games are played at night and sleep is restorative to health and performance. Sundays can often be more reserved with many players absent to attend baseball chapel.
But on this most recent Sunday, the early morning placidity was interrupted by intermittent raspy yelling and happy commotion coming from the Mariners’ bundle of baseball energy.
“What’s that noise?”
“Vic’s here,” came the response.
Indeed, Victor Robles announced his presence at the Mariners complex, yelling the names of teammates that entered his line of sight, attacking them with hugs and happiness. The more players he saw, the more he yelled. What he was saying didn’t really matter.
“You can always use some of that energy,” Julio Rodriguez said.
The mornings have been far less quiet in the days that followed. Robles arrives each morning with a child’s joy of getting to play baseball for a living while having the excitable energy of someone who has consumed a few too many cups of potent Cuban coffee.
“He’s an awesome fit for our team,” said Jerry Dipoto, the Mariners’ president of baseball operations. “He’s a ball of energy. He makes it go.”
The Mariners felt it immediately last season when they signed him to an MLB contract shortly after he was released by the Washington Nationals on June 1.
A once-hyped prospect for the Nationals, who sat atop all the ranking lists, Robles never quite lived up to lofty expectations in D.C.
There were tantalizing stretches when he showed signs of nearing his potential. But there were also maddening months of inconsistency at the plate with far too many moments of curious decision-making on the bases and mental mistakes in the outfield.
In need of outfield depth and any sort of talent upgrade in the outfield, the Mariners took a chance on Robles. It was low-risk investment, having to only pay the prorated MLB minimum salary.
The Mariners’ plan was to initially use him as a platoon outfielder, getting starts against left-handed pitchers while also serving as a late-innings defensive replacement or pinch runner in games he didn’t start.
The Mariners also made it clear to him – be yourself. It was a mantra of former manager Scott Servais. As long as Robles prepared to play each day and put in the work, he could be as bombastic and energetic as he wanted. In fact, they welcomed the energy and enthusiasm. On the bases, he had the green light to steal whenever he wanted. And they had no plans to give him the red light.
It was a little different from his time in D.C. The freedom given and the trust instilled helped rejuvenate Robles’ love for the game.
“When I first got here, Scott told me that it doesn’t matter what happened in the past,” Robles said through interpreter Freddy Llanos. “He said, ‘You’re here now, we know what kind of player you are, so just go out and be yourself.’ He knew what kind of damage I could do when I was on the bases, and he told me there’s no sign, there’s no rules, there’s no red light for you, if you want to take it, take it. We know that’s where you can do the most damage.”
It didn’t happen immediately. He appeared in just 15 games and had 22 plate appearances in June. But Robles started to earn more playing time as his production increased. Aided by some swing adjustments with former hitting coach Jarret DeHart, Robles started making quality contact, getting on base and then creating havoc. His personality came out even more. He didn’t stop talking or moving or dancing. He yelled when he got a hit. He yelled when he made an out. He celebrated after swiping second and then would steal third on the next pitch.
“Having them that supportive of me and having them know what my strengths and weaknesses are, and them understanding the player that I am, that I’m an energetic, fun guy and just letting me be myself, that is what helped me,” Robles said.
When Dominic Canzone went on the injured list with a groin strain on July 10, Robles’ role increased. He responded with eight hits and five stolen bases in his next seven games. When Rodriguez sprained his ankle while trying to make a catch against the wall on July 21, Robles took over as the starting center fielder in his absence. When Rodriguez was finally healthy enough to return to center, Robles slid over to right field and stayed there.
He played so well that the Mariners wanted to make sure he was around for the next few seasons, signing him to a two-year, $9.75 million contract extension that includes an additional $2 million in performance-related incentives and a $9 million club option for 2027.
“I’m grateful for that opportunity,” Robles said. “It practically came right after being released. I’m very thankful for that.”
In the final six weeks of the season with new manager Dan Wilson leading the team, the Mariners rolled out an outfield that featured Rodriguez in center, Robles in right field and Randy Arozarena, whom they acquired at the trade deadline, in left field. The trio was athletic and explosive at the plate, in the field and on the bases. Dipoto made it clear that the trio would be the starting outfield for the 2025 season as well.
In 77 games with the Mariners, Robles posted a .328/.393/.467 slash line with 20 doubles, four homers, 26 RBIs, 30 stolen bases, 16 walks and 44 strikeouts in 262 plate appearances.
There were still a few moments of frustration. Robles dealt with nagging injuries, products of his aggressive play. And there was, of course, the one time he was thrown out on a stolen-base attempt.
On Sept. 17, with the Mariners still fighting to make the postseason, they seemed on the verge of a big inning against Yankees starter Luis Gil. They had loaded the bases after Robles was hit by a pitch and Arozarena and Cal Raleigh worked walks. With Justin Turner at the plate, Gil fired three fastballs out of the strike zone.
A big inning loomed. But Robles inexplicably tried to race home after Gil had received the ball from the catcher and was going to pick up the rosin bag. Gil saw Robles take off and fired home for the out.
Robles later called the play “desperate.”
Wilson defended his aggressiveness after the game while also noting that it wasn’t the optimal timing.
“Sometimes Vic is going to get thrown out on a play that he shouldn’t make, but he’s got to be him,” Dipoto said. “He’s letting it eat. He’s letting his game play. I encouraged him, and so did Dan. Nobody wants to reel it back in.”
But can Robles repeat that sort of performance? Most scouts and baseball analysts doubt he can sustain that sort of pace for an entire season. The Mariners understand that some regression over the course of a season is possible. They know he still provides value.
“If we get the .333 batting average, .800 OPS, and he was on a six-win pace last season, if he’s that player, we just cracked something incredible,” Dipoto said. “What he did for our team last year is he brought our team to life at a time when he really needed it. If he continues to be a spark at the top of the lineup, if he plays good defense and continues to be a good teammate … if it’s something in between what he was doing the last couple years in Washington and what he did for us, and he’s that kind of energetic driver, sign me up.”