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Seattle Mariners' Relievers Progressing Towards Return, But No Clear Timetables Yet

The Seattle Mariners are getting encouraging news on injured ace relievers Matt Brash and Gregory Santos, but there are still no timetables for their returns.

Brady Farkas

Apr 5, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Matt Brash (47) throws a
Apr 5, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Matt Brash (47) throws a / Michael Thomas Shroyer-USA TODAY Sports
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The Seattle Mariners are getting some encouraging injury updates on relievers Matt Brash and Gregory Santos, but there are still no concrete timelines for their recoveries.

Per Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times:

Scott Servais did mention that Matt Brash had thrown a live BP session in Arizona the other day. So he's trending in the right direction. Gregory Santos is working toward thrown off the mound soon. Guessing we will get more in-depth injury info on Friday from Justin Hollander

While the news is encouraging on both players, it still seems like they are each a ways off from returning. Neither player pitched in a Cactus League game, so they should both need a full rehab assignment, painting the picture that mid-May would be a best-case scenario for both at this point.

The Mariners are certainly missing the presence of both relievers in the early-going, also. At 5-8, the bullpen has felt tenuous at times, with Andres Munoz struggling to throw consistent strikes and Gabe Speier displaying some control issues also. After trading Erik Swanson, Paul Sewald and Justin Topa in recent years, the bullpen is certainly thinned.

The 25-year-old Brash made his major league debut in 2022 but became a dominant reliever in 2023, pitching to a 3.06 ERA with 107 strikeouts in just 70.2 innings. Furthermore, Santos ended the 2023 season as the Chicago White Sox' closer. He was traded to Seattle this past offseason.

The Mariners will open up a series on Friday night at home against the Chicago Cubs.

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Brady Farkas
BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady. 

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