The Mariners made three notable roster calls Thursday, keeping closer Andrés Muñoz in the fold while moving on from right-hander Bryce Miller and outfielder Victor Robles.
Seattle picked up Muñoz’s $9 million club option, but declined Miller’s $6.075 million option and Robles’ $9 million option. Miller will stay under team control through 2029 through the arbitration process, and because his projected arbitration salary for 2026 is $3.9 million, the Mariners will pay a $15,000 buyout on the option and work out a new deal in arbitration. Robles, who gets a $500,000 buyout, is now a free agent.
Muñoz’s case is the most interesting of the three. The 27-year-old is coming off a rough year by his standards, finishing with a 4.24 ERA and blowing 10 of the 39 save/hold chances he got from the club. Even so, Seattle is sticking with him, a decision that makes sense when you factor in the cost of free-agent relievers and the fact that his contract also includes a $10 million option for 2028.
The underlying stuff still looks loud. Muñoz averaged 99.8 mph on his fastball, his best number since he hit 100.2 mph in 2022, and he struck out 37.1% of opposing hitters. His 10% walk rate was worse than average, but not wildly so, and it was still his best mark since that dominant 2022 season.
A few numbers helped explain why the results went sideways. Muñoz carried a .316 average on balls in play, roughly 26 points above league average and nearly 40 points above his own career norm.
The bigger issue was the home-run spike. Before 2026, he had a 10% homer-to-flyball rate; this season, 23.1% of his fly balls left the yard even while he was pitching in one of the game’s most pitcher-friendly parks.
The Mariners are betting that number settles back down and that his velocity and strikeout ability again make him one of the sport’s top late-inning relievers.
Miller’s situation is more complicated. The 28-year-old missed the first seven weeks with an oblique strain, then returned to make 22 starts and throw 118 2/3 innings with a 4.17 ERA, a 24.5% strikeout rate and a 7.8% walk rate.
His season came on the heels of a breakout 2024, when he posted a 2.94 ERA in 180 1/3 innings, and an injury-riddled 2025 that brought a 5.68 ERA and multiple injured list stints because of his elbow. He started 2026 well, but finished poorly, giving up a 6.14 ERA over his final 13 outings.
Seattle may still shuffle its rotation this winter, but if Miller ends up the odd man out, it would mean selling low. He’s part of a crowded mix that includes Logan Gilbert, George Kirby, Bryan Woo, Emerson Hancock and top prospect Kade Anderson, who made an impressive late-season debut. Another arm, Ryan Sloan, is also climbing fast and could be ready to debut at some point in 2027.
Robles’ option decision was expected after a pair of injury setbacks wrecked his stint with Seattle. The Mariners first brought him in during 2024 after he was released by Washington, and he played well enough late that season for the club to give him a two-year, $9.75 million extension with the extra option year attached.
That deal never really got off the ground. Early in the 2025 season, Robles made a spectacular catch in right field and was carted off the field afterward.
Tests showed a dislocation and fracture in his left shoulder, and he missed more than three months. A pectoral strain early in 2026 cost him another eight weeks, and when he returned, he couldn’t regain his footing in a limited role.
Across the two-year contract, Robles appeared in just 263 plate appearances and hit .251/.300/.318. He did steal 16 bases and still has enough speed to cover ground in the outfield, but his market now looks like a low-cost one-year deal with incentives, or possibly a minor league contract and spring training invite.
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