The Seattle Mariners had the best starting rotation in baseball last season. They also had one of the healthiest, with their top five starting pitchers combining to make 149 of the team’s 162 starts.
It’s been a much different case this year.
Cal Raleigh shares the impact made by M’s hitting coaches
George Kirby has been out since he was shut down in spring training with shoulder inflammation. Logan Gilbert has been on the injured list since April 26 with a flexor strain in his elbow. And on Wednesday, Bryce Miller was placed on the 15-day IL with elbow inflammation.
As a result, the Mariners’ top five starters have combined to make just 31 of 42 starts.
How concerning are these pitching injuries for the Mariners? Sports injury expert Will Carroll, who has written multiple books on sports injuries, was asked that question during an appearance Friday on Seattle Sports’ Brock and Salk.
“Well, I want to make it clear that losing 60% of your expected rotation is bad,” Carroll said. “I mean, there’s just no way around that. (But the injuries) are all minor. And you’ve got to give the medical staff some credit for catching these things early enough that they don’t blow out.”
As Carroll mentioned, the good news is that all three starters could return soon.
Kirby is slated to make his third rehab start with Triple-A Tacoma on Friday. Gilbert threw his first bullpen session on Tuesday. And after an MRI revealed no structural damage to Miller’s elbow, Seattle is optimistic his IL stint won’t be long.
Related: Updates from Mariners GM on Kirby, Gilbert
“Kirby is really, really close (to returning),” Carroll said. “Logan Gilbert is likely to go out on a rehab assignment basically about the time Kirby comes in. And with Miller’s elbow, a lot of times you get these inflammations and they don’t know what it is. They’re treating the symptom rather than the cause. But from everybody I’ve talked to, that doesn’t seem to be the case here. This seems like they actually know what it is and they can attack it and get through it.
“So you’re going to have injuries in the course of a season, but minimizing those is one of the things that a medical staff doesn’t often get credit for, and the Mariners should.”
Listen to the full conversation with sports injury expert Will Carroll at this link or in the audio player near the middle of this story. Tune in to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6 to 10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.
Seattle Mariners news and analysis
• Why Seattle Mariners are a ‘more compelling’ team this season
• Seattle Mariners pitcher’s ERA lowered by six runs on off day
• Seattle Mariners’ Dylan Moore shares key factors to career-best start
• Could Seattle Mariners swing an early trade? Morosi weighs in
• Seattle Mariners RHP Bryce Miller says injury has been an ongoing issue
