Jarred Kelenic's slow start reignites debate over infamous Mets-Mariners trade

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By , Audacy Sports

Mariners outfielder Jarred Kelenic struggled in his MLB debut last season, and so far his followup campaign is off to a shaky start.

The former top prospect was leading the league in strikeouts through Tuesday's action, with a whopping nine whiffs in his first 17 plate appearances.

Kelenic, hitting an ugly .067/.176/.067 in the small sample, was not in the starting lineup on Wednesday with the Mariners facing a left-handed starter in Dallas Keuchel of the White Sox.

While it's far too soon to write off the 22-year-old Kelenic, who by many accounts was rushed to the majors last season, he remains somewhat of a polarizing figure, and was a trending topic for at least two passionate fanbases on social media this week.

Of course, most Mariners fans are preaching patience and are still holding out hope that Kelenic will realize his potential.

But many fans of Kelenic's former team, the Mets, have been facing the possibility that he might turn into the next great player who got away, all while seeing mixed results from Edwin Diaz and Robinson Cano, the players they obtained in exchange for Kelenic.

On Tuesday and Wednesday, though, amid Kelenic's ongoing struggles, Diaz finished off a pair of Mets wins. The turn of events fueled some interesting chatter on Baseball Twitter.

Here's what some baseball fans were saying about Kelenic:

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Featured Image Photo Credit: Getty