Safeco Field has become a house of horrors for the Seattle Mariners

Best The views. Regardless of where you're at in the stadium, there's truly no bad seat in the park. Best The views. Regardless of where you're at in the stadium, there's truly no bad seat in the park. Photo: GRANT HINDSLEY, SEATTLEPI.COM Photo: GRANT HINDSLEY, SEATTLEPI.COM Image 1 of / 26 Caption Close Safeco Field has become a house of horrors for the Seattle Mariners 1 / 26 Back to Gallery

After he spent this past offseason reshaping the roster to better fit Safeco Field, few would blame Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto if, internally, he panicked just a bit watching his club go 1-5 on its opening homestand.

But during an appearance Thursday on 710 ESPN Seattle, Dipoto argued it's too early to draw conclusions.

"We didn't play as well as we wanted during that opening homestand, but you can't panic when that happens," he said. "When you sense the panic around you, that's when you've got to keep your head on straight. A 162-game journey is long. You're going to go through ups and downs. You're going to win five in a row, and lose five in a row."

The Mariners beat the Angels, 9-4, Sunday in Anaheim to win the three-game series and finish a nine-game road trip with a 6-3 record. It continued a strange trend. Away from Seattle, the lineup and rotation have been adequate and the bullpen better than expected. The Mariners have won all four road series this season.

In six games at Safeco Field, the lineup has struggled. The Mariners combined to score 11 runs and post a .170 batting average in that dreadful opening homestand.

"We're going to play 81 home games," Dipoto said. "It's a long journey. If it comes to where we're three and 30 at home, now we got a problem. But the fact that it took us six tries to win one is probably too small a sample size to judge, I think we've done a better job on the road. We've found ways to win. And I think you'll start to see that translate when we get back home as well."

Safeco Field, with its thick marine layer and cold temperatures in late spring and early autumn, has rarely been kind to hitters. The Mariners lineup has struggled to score runs at home for years, and, as a result, wins haven't come easily.

In 2015, the Mariners went 36-45 in Seattle. The year before, they went 41-40 but needed wins in the final three home games of the season to crack the .500 mark at Safeco Field for the first time since 2009.

Since management made the decision to move the fences in before the 2013 season, Safeco Field has never ranked higher than 15th in ESPN.com's "Park Factors," which compares run production at home against run production on the road. Last year, it ranked 27th. In 2014, when the Mariners were one win from forcing a playoff to get into the American League Wild Card series, it ranked last. It also ranked last in 2012, the final season before the fences were moved in.

On the final day of the latest homestand, Mariners first-year manager Scott Servais did little to quell complaints about Safeco Field being unkind to hitters. Asked if the park played fairly, he opted to hold off answering.

"Fair? Great question. I don't know if it's fair for me to comment on that yet," he said. "I need to see a few more games in here. I said early on we were going to play a lot of close games just because the ballpark kind of dictates itself that way, with the runs coming at a premium."

When Safeco Field opened in 1999, it was hailed for its retro look, wide concourses and stunning views. Some 17 years later, it still has much to offer fans, despite the franchise's perpetual struggles. But there are also drawbacks to calling home a venue that hasn't produced any midsummer magic in more than a decade.

The Mariners (9-9) open a six-game homestand Monday night against the Astros, as Taijuan Walker (1-0, 1.50 ERA) faces off against former Mariner Doug Fister (1-2, 5.94 ERA). First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m. Pacific Time, with Root Sports Northwest providing the television broadcast. The game can be heard on 710 ESPN Seattle.

But before you make your way to the ballpark, consider the best and worst Safeco Field has to offer.

Visit seattlepi.com for more Seattle Mariners news. Contact sports reporter Adam Lewis at adam lewis@seattlepi.com or @AdamLewisPI.