2001 Record: 116-46, 1st in AL West, lost ALCS to Yankees 2001 Results | 2002 Schedule | 2002 Roster | 2001 Statistics: Batting | Pitching Offense (AL rank) Defense (AL rank) 927 runs (1st) Home: 440 runs (3rd) Road: 487 (1st) 627 runs allowed (1st) Home: 3.04 ERA (1st) Road: 4.05 ERA (4th) 2001 Stats Leaders   Average: Ichiro Suzuki, .350 Runs: Ichiro, 127 On-base pct: Edgar Martinez, .423 Stolen bases: Ichiro, 56 Wins: Jamie Moyer, 20 Saves: Kaz Sasaki, 45 Home runs: Bret Boone, 37 RBI: Boone, 141 Slugging pct.: Boone, .578 OPS: Martinez, 966 ERA: Freddy Garcia, 3.05 Strikeouts: Garcia, 163

ESPN's Take Q: How do the Mariners follow up on 116 wins? The Mariners have an incredibly tough challenge to try and duplicate that feat. Nevertheless, the M's are a very talented team with no glaring weaknesses. They upgraded significantly at third base with Jeff Cirillo and can easily replace the loss of right-handed pitcher Aaron Sele with one of their many young, fresh, power arms -- like Joel Pineiro. With relievers Arthur Rhodes, Jeff Nelson, and Kazuhiro Sasaki, there is no better back of the bullpen in baseball. The offense is ignited by AL MVP Ichiro. But make no mistake -- the Mariners win because of their fantastic pitching staff. Look for this team to again dominate the AL West. Their goal is the World Series; anything less will be a huge disappointment. -- Tom Candiotti  ESPN.com's Crystal Ball Ichiro will once again lead the AL in average, hits and steals and increase his HRs from eight to 17. With 692 at-bats, Ichiro had the most heavily weighted batting average in the league. And when you hit .350, that's an enormously positive impact on a fantasy squad. In this case, the fact that he doesn't draw walks is a good thing. Hey, that's why they call it fantasy. Some thought even if Bret Boone hits 17 less HRs, drives in 41 less runs, crosses home plate 18 fewer times and hits 31 points lower, he'd still have to be considered the second best fantasy second baseman behind Roberto Alomar, based on '01 numbers. -- Brandon Funston Batting order Ichiro Suzuki, RF Jeff Cirillo, 3B Bret Boone, 2B John Olerud, 1B Edgar Martinez, DH Mike Cameron, CF Ruben Sierra, LF Ben Davis, C Carlos Guillen, SS Bench Mark McLemore, Desi Relaford, Ben Davis, Charles Gipson Rotation Freddy Garcia, Jamie Moyer, Paul Abbott, James Baldwin, Joel Pineiro Bullpen Kazuhiro Sasaki, Jeff Nelson, Arthur Rhodes, Ryan Franklin, John Halama, Shigetoshi Hasegawa Antonio Perez, SS Perez was acquired in the Ken Griffey trade and was a top prospect before missing most of last year with a broken wrist. He should head for Double-A and compete for a starting job in 2003.

Catcher: Ben Davis / Dan Wilson Acquired from the Padres for shortstop prospect Ramon Vazquez and pitcher Brett Tomko, Davis will share time with the veteran Wilson. Davis never lived up to expectations in San Diego, but has a strong arm and drew 66 walks for a respectable .337 on-base percentage. Wilson had his best year at the plate since 1997 and works well with the pitching staff. AL Position Ranking: 7th First Base: John Olerud The smooth-swinging, slick-fielding Olerud had his usual underrated year, posting a .401 OBP, the fourth time in five seasons he's been above .400. Only negative is his lack of speed, as he led AL with 21 GIDPs. AL Position Ranking: 6th Second Base: Bret Boone Finished third in the AL MVP voting after setting AL records for HRs (37) and RBI (141) by a second baseman. Boone was a free agent but signed a three-year, $25 million deal. AL Position Ranking: 1st Third Base: Jeff Cirillo Cirillo hit .326 and .313 in two years with Colorado, but that was disappointing considering that's what he hit in Milwaukee. Cause for alarm: doubles dropped from 53 to 26 and walks from 67 to 43. Is bat slowing down? AL Position Ranking: 4th Shortstop: Carlos Guillen Steady defensive shortstop who could improve on mediocre 689 OPS (on-base + slugging percentage) at the plate since it was discovered late in the season he had playing with tuberculosis, which likely sapped some of his strength. AL Position Ranking: 7th Left Field: Ruben Sierra Signed as a free agent from Texas, where he revitalized his career with a .561 slugging percentage in 344 at-bats. Will share time with supersub Mark McLemore, who had .384 OBP and 39 steals while playing 35+ games at three positions a year ago (LF, 3B, SS). AL Position Ranking: 10th Center Field: Mike Cameron One of the most underrated players in the majors, Cameron excels in all phases of the game and won a Gold Glove while finishing with 110 RBI and 99 runs scored. His constant enthusiasm has made him a clubhouse leader. AL Position Ranking: 2nd Right Field: Ichiro Suzuki Won AL MVP Award after leading league in average (.350), hits (242), steals (56) and winning Gold Glove with great range and strong arm. Doesn't walk (just 20 unintentional walks), but M's still led majors in leadoff on-base percentage. He wasn't a fluke and could even improve if he draws a few more walks and hits for a little more power. AL Position Ranking: 2nd Designated Hitter: Edgar Martinez He's 39 years old and still going strong. Had .423 OBP, the seventh consecutive season his OBP has been at least that high. Even Barry Bonds hasn't done that. Will keep hitting until the day he retires. AL Position Ranking: 1st No. 1 Starter: Freddy Garcia Led AL in ERA (.305), innings pitched (238.2) and lowest opponents' average (.225) and slugging (.344) among starters. A true No. 1 who is now 44-19 in three seasons. Keep in mind that including the playoffs, he threw over 250 innings and is still just 25. Ranking among AL starters: 3rd No. 2 Starter: Jamie Moyer Became oldest pitcher to win 20 games for the first time. Rarely breaks 85 mph, but still held opponents to .239 average. Not a good bet to match 3.43 ERA, but should be solid once again and was Seattle's best starter in the playoffs. Ranking among AL starters: 9th No. 3 Starter: Paul Abbott A lesson in perseverance as the 34-year-old went 17-4. He did lead the majors in run support at 7.79 runs per game, so he's unlikely to win 17 again. Benefits greatly from Safeco Field: had 2.90 ERA at home, 5.30 on the road. Ranking among AL starters: 29th No. 4 Starter: James Baldwin Replaces Aaron Sele in the rotation, although unlikely to match Sele's 200+ innings (Baldwin has done that just once in his career) or ERA (Baldwin's career mark is 4.98). Ranking among AL starters: 37th Bullpen: Jeff Nelson, Arthur Rhodes, Shigetoshi Hasegawa, Ryan Franklin M's led majors in bullpen ERA last year thanks to dominating years from Rhodes (8-0, 1.72, .189 average against) and Nelson (4-3, 2.76, .136 average against). Hard to repeat those numbers, but bullpen should once again be among the best with Hasegawa replacing the departed Jose Paniagua. May need a second lefty to replace Norm Charlton, who is out for the season. AL Position Ranking: 1st Closer: Kazuhiro Sasaki Ranked second in AL with 45 saves, although just seventh in save percentage and went 0-4. Control improved significantly last year (11 walks in 66.2 IP) from rookie season. AL Position Ranking: 4th

Overall Power Index Rankings (AL rank):
Position: 4.67 (2nd) | Pitching: 4.17 (3rd)

-- David Schoenfield