The Mariners were hard to watch in 2011 because they couldn’t hit their way out of a wet paper bag. They finished up with a 67-95 record which had them in last place in the A.L. West, 29 games behind the Rangers. Here is a look at what stood out to me about the Mariners in 2011:

TEAM MVP: 28-year old righty closer Brandon League stepped into injured David Aardsma’s footsteps and he did an excellent job. League pitched in 65 games (0 starts) for the Mariners in 2011 and he was 1-5 with 37 saves, a 2.79 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He only walked 10 batters in 61 1/3 innings for the Mariners in 2011 as he was super aggressive in the strike zone. A lot of the Mariners wins were close ones, making League more valuable than most closers.

BEST PITCHER: 25-year old righty starting pitcher Felix Hernandez turned in another solid year for the Mariners in 2011. He pitched in 33 games (all starts) for the Mariners last year and he was 14-14 with a 3.47 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. Hernandez whiffed 222 batters while only walking 67 batters in his 233 2/3 innings in 2011, which was impressive.

PLEASANT SURPRISE: 25-year old lefty swinging OF/1B/DH Mike Carp came up to the Mariners about half way in the year and he was solid. Carp played in 79 games for the Mariners in 2011 and he was 80 for 290 (.276 avg, .791 OPS) with 27 runs scored, 12 homers and 46 RBIs. The Mariners are going to be counting on Carp in 2012 and beyond, so they hope last year wasn’t a mirage.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: 33-year old switch-hitting 3B Chone Figgins was completely pathetic for the Mariners in 2011. He played in 81 games for the Mariners last year and he was 54 for 288 (.188 avg, .484 OPS) with 24 runs scored, 1 homer, 15 RBIs and 11 stolen bases.