During the recent offseason, a major point of speculation surrounding the Seattle Mariners was whether they would trade one of their promising young starting pitchers in exchange for a impactful bat to bolster their lineup.
The Mariners boast a wealth of young pitching talent, including 26-year-old George Kirby, 26-year-old Logan Gilbert, 25-year-old Bryce Miller, and 24-year-old Bryan Woo. Despite receiving interest from teams like the Boston Red Sox, who approached the Mariners about Kirby, Gilbert, and others, Seattle opted not to make any deals. Additionally, MLB Network insider Jon Morosi noted in December that Miller was attracting significant trade attention from various teams.
How close the Mariners came to trading one of their young pitchers was a question that ESPN MLB insider Jeff Passan addressed during his appearance on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk show on Tuesday.
Passan explained that the Mariners were “not close” to trading their young pitchers. He emphasized the immense value of young starting pitching in baseball, highlighting the Mariners’ success in developing such talent. He noted that even when a team believes it can develop quality major league pitchers, young pitching remains the most coveted commodity in the sport.
According to Passan, in order to trade these young pitchers, a team would need to receive a significantly higher return than their current value, as assessed by analytical systems. However, such trades are increasingly rare in today’s baseball landscape. Teams are often hesitant to part with future value for immediate gain due to the risk associated with pitching injuries. Passan suggested that fear of injury contributes to the reluctance to make such trades, as pitchers with injury histories can diminish the value of a trade. Despite the Mariners’ possession of valuable young pitchers, Passan implied that they may struggle to find trade partners willing to offer appropriate value in return.
Dominant run for M’s pitching
While it’s still early in the season, the Mariners’ decision to retain their young pitchers appears to be paying off handsomely.
Following a sluggish start, Seattle’s rotation has been nothing short of dominant over the last 10 games. Mariners starters have led the league with an impressive 1.44 ERA and 0.77 WHIP during this stretch, amassing 64 strikeouts against just nine walks. With nine quality starts over this span, the lone exception being George Kirby’s five shutout innings in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Colorado Rockies, the team has seen success, winning seven of their last 10 games after an initial 4-8 start.
Reflecting on the Mariners’ recent pitching prowess, Passan noted its rarity but also its alignment with preseason expectations. He highlighted the team’s strong pitching as a key factor driving optimism heading into the season, given their ability to consistently deliver such performances.
Seattle’s starting rotation established itself as one of the league’s best last season, posting the fourth-best ERA (3.89) and the top WHIP (1.14). While they stumbled out of the gate this year with a collective 5.21 ERA and 1.34 WHIP through the first 12 games, their recent stretch of dominance suggests that those early struggles were likely an aberration.
“It has righted itself,” Passan remarked. “Since my last appearance on Seattle Sports, the Mariners’ starters have maintained an impressive seven-to-one strikeout-to-walk ratio. None of them have allowed more than one walk in a start. When you’re striking out batters and limiting walks, success tends to follow. It’s a simple yet effective formula.”
