Former Seattle Mariners Ace Set to Undergo Major Surgery
The Seattle Mariners got a huge bump to their lineup on Wednesday when JP Crawford was activated from the 10-day injured list after spending over a month out of action with a broken pinky.
Unfortunately, the news wasn't as good for a former M's ace who is no longer with the organization.
According to an article from MLB Trade Rumors — former Mariners starting pitcher Marco Gonzales is set to undergo surgery to repair the flexor tendon in his elbow. Gonzales will have the surgery in September. The timetable for return is estimated at 9-12 months which means he'll miss most or all of 2025 as well. News of Gonzales' surgery was first reported on "X" by Noah Hiles of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
He has a contract option which is sure to be declined now by the Pirates. That would make him a free agent in the offseason.
Gonzales pitched the better part of seven seasons in Seattle from 2017 through 2023. He started 148 games for the Mariners and made 151 appearances. He was originally acquired via trade with the St. Louis Cardinals on July 21, 2017, in a deal that netted the Cardinals current Boston Red Sox and two-time Gold Glove award-winning outfielder Tyler O'Neil.
Gonzalez had a 4.08 ERA and 631 strikeouts with the Mariners and was part of the 2022 starting rotation that helped Seattle break its then-21 year playoff drought. He was one of the better pitchers in the American League for a period from 2019-2021 and even went 7-2 in the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
He was traded to the Atlanta Braves on Dec. 3, 2023, and subsequently traded to Pittsburgh two days later.
It's never great to see any injury, especially season-ending ones. And with Gonzales' experience and age, any lengthy setback is cause for concern.
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