Rafael Montero, Seattle Mariners.
We will look at this year’s version of the Seattle Mariners‘ opening day bullpen compared to last season’s. There are only two returning relievers on this year’s opening day roster, Anthony Misiewicz and Nick Margevicius. The rest are either converted starters or pitched someplace else at the beginning of last season.
Last year, the Seattle Mariners relief corps was abysmal. At times, when manager Scott Servais called to the pen, it was like adding gasoline to a fire. Very rarely did the M’s get great results. A concept such as consistent good outings over multiple games didn’t exist.
The Seattle Mariners bullpen began the 2020 season with 11 relievers because of the COVID-19 expanded rosters for the shortened season. They opened the season with relievers were Dan Altavilla, Brandon Brennan, Nestor Cortes, Carl Edwards Jr., Zach Grotz, Matt Magill, Yohan Ramirez, Bryan Shaw, Taylor Williams, along with Nick Margevicius and Anthony Misiewicz.
Only three spent the entire season on Seattle’s roster Misiewicz, Margevicius, and Yohan Ramirez. The rest were either injured, traded, or otherwise didn’t pan out. As a sign of overall bullpen improvement, Ramirez didn’t make the team out of spring training this year. The M’s assigned him to their alternate site, so he could be back up with the team at any time.
Kendall Graveman had a tough start to his Seattle Mariners career. After a pair of unsuccessful starts last season, he was diagnosed with a benign tumor on his spine. When he came back, Graveman pitched out of the pen quite effectively. In nine relief appearances, the lefty pitched 10 innings with a 3.60 ERA and .167 BAA. His stuff looked even better in Spring Training.
Nick Margevicius began 2020 in the bullpen before going into the starting rotation. Margevicius took Kendall Graveman‘s spot when the latter was injured early on in the season. Margevicius is on the roster again this year; however, he is in the bullpen instead of the starting rotation.
He lost the competition for the sixth starter job to Justin Dunn. Last season before going into the rotation Margevicius only pitched three games in relief. Not a large enough sample size to really know how effective he can be. To begin the season, he will be used as a long reliever. We could see him pitch in at least a couple of games in the first two series in Seattle. I would consider Margevicius an upgrade in the bullpen no matter how long he is there.
Like Margevicius, Misiewicz is a lefty as wel. However, Misiewicz’s role is as a setup or short reliever. He’ll likely will pitch one inning most of the time. After one year of experience, I consider Misiewicz an upgrade over the pitcher he was a year ago. This spring, Misiewicz pitched in seven games with an era of 1.23, giving up only three hits, walking no batters, and striking out seven.
The Mariners picked up Casey Sadler from the Chicago Cubs off of waivers on September 5, 2020. He threw 10 innings, earning a 4.50 ERA in seven games. Sadler will most likely pitch this season in the sixth or seventh innings before Middleton or Graveman come in for the eighth inning.
The other members of this year’s bullpen beginning the season besides the two lefties and Graveman are Keynan Middleton, Rafael Montero, Casey Sadler, Drew Steckenrider, and Will Vest.
Domingo Tapia would have made the team if not for an early April oblique injury. Before the Mariners claimed him off of waivers on September 11, Tapia pitched in only five games with a 2.08 ERA and four strikeouts in 4.1 innings. Look for the hard-throwing righty to be a big part of the pen when he returns.
Seattle traded for closer Rafael Montero from the Texas Rangers during the off-season. Another pitcher who began his career as a starter, Texas converted Montero to the pen in 2019. Last season he moved to late relief, succeeding in eight-of-eight save opportunities. Montero threw 17.1 innings over 17 appearances, with a 4.08 ERA and 1.019 WHIP.
Keynan Middleton pitched last season for the Los Angeles Angels. Middleton spent a good part of 2020 coming back from Tommy John surgery, which also sidelined him for most of the 2019 season. Middleton signed with the Seattle Mariners as a free this winter. A fully recovered Middleton is a definite upgrade as a setup man.
Will Vest is the Seattle Mariners’ latest Rule 5 draft player. Selected from the Detroit Tigers, Vest will start the season in non-crucial situations. The 25-year-old must stay on the M’s roster all year, or Seattle has to option Vest back to Detroit.
It was a mild surprise when non-roster invitee Drew Steckenrider made the M’s opening day roster. He has talent, but like many other Seattle Mariners relievers, Steckenrider is on the comeback trail from injuries. In fact, he sat out the entire 2020 season. He’ll need to be the pre-injury version of Drew Steckenrider to stay with the team all season.
The Mariners bullpen looks much better than last year’s team. Not only do they have a closer as well as the setup relievers they lacked last season, but they also have depth in the alternate camp. Ramirez, Brandon Brennan, Joey Gerber, Wyatt Mills, Ljay Newsome, Erik Swanson, and lefty Aaron Fletcher are only a phone call away from joining the team.
What do you think about the 2021 Seattle Mariners Opening Day bullpen? Let us know in the comments section below or on social media.