Seattle’s bullpen depth has been tested all season, and Matt Brash’s latest update is another reminder of how thin the margin has been for the Mariners.
The right-hander, out since June 10 with a right lat strain, threw a bullpen during the club’s recent series against the Boston Red Sox. He felt good while he was throwing, but the area tightened up afterward, and he had an MRI on Wednesday.
“He has bounced back reasonably, not as much as we would have hoped,” Mariners general manager Justin Hollander said before Wednesday’s game against the Athletics at T-Mobile Park. “Which is why we've been in the same (pattern) where he's throwing bullpens but hasn't progressed to live BPs or game-action.
Because this has been a pattern over the last 10 days, two weeks, where he feels really good in-between (bullpens), he feels really good throwing on (flat ground), he feels fine in the bullpen and then after the fact it starts to tighten up a little bit. Until we can get through that, there's just no reason to push him out there and cause more injury or have a recurrence of the same injury.”
It’s Brash’s second injured list stint this season for the same issue. Even with the stops and starts, he has been sharp when available, putting up a 0.54 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 16.2 innings over 20 appearances.
The Mariners also had a long list of other injury updates Wednesday. Brendan Donovan remains in concussion protocol and is still working through symptoms, with Hollander saying the team can’t yet tell whether Donovan will need a rehab game or two before returning, or if he’ll go straight back onto the major league roster.
Victor Robles was placed on the Family Medical Emergency list, and Stuart Fairchild was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma in the corresponding move. Hollander and manager Dan Wilson both said they wished Robles and his family the best, but did not offer further details.
Nick Davila is set to undergo an MRI on Wednesday and will miss the rest of the season. The team believes the issue is either a sprain or a stress reaction in his rib.
There was at least some encouraging news on Cole Wilcox, who could “touch the mound” this weekend, according to Hollander. If that goes well and he clears multiple bullpens, the Mariners could send him on a rehab assignment with the Rainiers and have him available before the end of the season.
Minor league outfielder Brennen Davis is also done for the year. He was recalled from Triple-A and placed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday after missing time since June 2 with a hamstring strain, then suffering an oblique strain during his recovery.
Right-handed starter Emerson Hancock, who is dealing with a left adductor strain, is scheduled to throw either flat ground or off a mound Sunday. The next step will depend on how that session goes.
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With rotation depth thinned by an injury, the appeal here is less about where Woods Richardson has traditionally worked and more about where he might help most. Seattle can use pitching in just about any form right now, and his ability to cover innings gives the club another option if it wants to patch a game together out of the bullpen or lean on a bulk reliever while the roster sorts itself out. [Read more 🡒]