Former Buckeye baseball star Dominic Canzone tearing it up for the Seattle Mariners

The former 8th-round pick has forced himself into the Seattle Mariners’ starting lineup.

Two weeks after getting called back up to the big leagues, former Ohio State baseball star and First Team All-Big Ten honoree Dominic Canzone is tearing the cover off the baseball for the Seattle Mariners. The left-handed hitting outfielder hit another home run last night in the Mariners’ 11-2 win over the Minnesota Twins — one day after belting two homers during a 14-6 win over the first-place Chicago Cubs.

For those keeping track at home, that’s three homers in two games, giving him 18 total for his career over 139 career games spread between the Diamondbacks and the Mariners.

Canzone had a slow start to the season this year, hitting .209 with a .639 OPS in spring training this season with the Mariners and then going 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in the first two games of the season. Canzone was optioned to Triple-A Tacoma on April 13, and over the next 45 games Canzone hit .296 with 13 homers, 36 RBI’s, and a .924 OPS.

Despite only playing 45 games in the minors, Canzone’s 13 homers is the ninth-most in the Pacific Coast League, and his .924 OPS would rank seventh in the PCL if he had played enough games to qualify.

Since being recalled by the Mariners on June 9, the 6-foot tall outfielder from Sagamore Hills, Ohio is hitting .333 with a 1.107 OPS, four home runs, and seven RBI. He’s limited his strikeouts, only punching out four times in 36 at bats — a miniscule 11% strikeout rate.

The advanced metrics back up Canzone’s performance this season — his expected batting average (xBA) stands at .287, which is better than league average. His expected slugging percentage (.479), average exit velocity (91.3 mph), and squared-up percentage (34.5%) are all better than league average as well.

Mariners manager Dan Wilson said that Canzone’s consistency and aggressiveness at the plate is what has made him valuable to the team after spending the majority of the season at Triple-A thus far.

“I think in terms of Dom, the consistency was there right now,” Wilson said after the Mariners beat Cleveland on June 13. “And so far in the couple of games he’s had an opportunity to play in, his intent has been very aggressive and the consistency has been there. He’s found the barrel a couple of times and is really hitting the ball well. That’s what you’re hoping for, and that’s what he’s been able to do.”

Canzone was a .336 career hitter at Ohio State from 2017-2019, and has established himself as a reliable option for the Mariners this season, especially against right-handed pitching. All four of his homers have come against right-handers, and with Seattle set to face right-handed pitchers in each of their next five games, Canzone should continue to get plenty of at-bats for the Mariners, who currently hold the final AL Wild Card spot, and would be the 6-seed in the American League if the season ended Monday night.