The Seattle Mariners lost on Friday night in heartbreaking fashion, falling 6-5 to the Athletics in West Sacramento, Calif. It was the latest gut punch loss in a season full of them.

And that feels like something I've written before - many times - this season.

This time, after the Mariners took a 5-4 lead in the top of the 10th inning, Eduard Bazardo gave up a two-run walk-off home run to former Mariners infielder Donovan Walton, not known for his power.

If you've been watching Bazardo in the second half of the season, you know the story. It's been dreadful for him. It's been even worse over his last four outings. And I recently wrote that running him out there isn't doing him, or the team, any favors.

So why did Dan Wilson go to him in such a pivotal spot? Trust and strikeout ability, I assume.

Wilson had already used Jose Ferrer, Seranthony Dominguez and Carlos Vargas in relief of George Kirby. Andres Munoz and Gabe Speier seemed to be down after working consecutive days. That left only Bazardo, Cooper Criswell, Michael Rucker and Hoby Milner in the bullpen for that spot. I personally would have gone with Criswell, but I presume Wilson wanted the guy he's trusted for two years, and the guy who has better strikeout stuff in order to more easily prevent the automatic runner scoring from second.

At this point, with the Mariners at 69-79 and the season all but over, it might not really matter anymore. Had the Mariners won, they would have moved to five games back of the Houston Astros in the division, and that would have been nice, but they still probably wouldn't make the playoffs. This loss likely just seals that fact, which most of us already thought for at least a few weeks.

The question now becomes about 2027 and if Bazardo has a spot in the bullpen or not. Let's examine a few of the factors:

If everyone is healthy, which is always an "if," the bullpen figures to have five fully guaranteed spots out of eight.

Andres Munoz, Gabe Speier, Jose Ferrer, Seranthony Dominguez and Matt Brash fill those spots. Cooper Criswell is currently under team control through 2030, so I'd say he has the inside track right now as a long relief option. And Carlos Vargas remains interesting enough to justifiably keep around. Neither Criswell nor Vargas have options to be sent to the minor leagues.

That makes seven of eight spots, which leaves Bazardo and Michael Rucker as the guys from this year's team fighting for it.

For me, the Mariners need to upgrade the bullpen. I think everyone sees that, especially given how poor it has performed in the second half. They need another reliable leverage option, or at least someone who can pitch in the "pivot" spot in the fifth or sixth inning. Bazardo was that guy in 2025 before graduating into a higher-leverage role. I'd say as of now, the Mariners should look to a different option. Bazardo doesn't have any options left, so he'd need to be designated for assignment eventually.

And the Mariners could use multiple new bullpen arms, so if they are able to find them, I'd say that Criswell and Vargas's spots are also in jeopardy. But again, I do think they provide value in various ways.

And of course: Speier, Brash, Criswell and Vargas have all spent time on the injured list season, proving that you need to cultivate organizational depth and be willing to go out and make moves when the situation calls for it.

Regardless, this is a conversation for the offseason, which is sadly coming sooner than anyone wants.