Former Seattle Mariners Lefty Can't Pitch in Dominican Winter League Because of Wild Rule
Last week, we learned that former Seattle Mariners pitcher Roenis Elias had signed a contract with the Fubon Guardians of the Chinese Professional Baseball League.
Now, the Guardians are preventing Elias from pitching at all in the Dominican Winter League. LIDOM is currently going through its playoffs.
Aguillas put out the following statement on social media (note that is been translated from Spanish to English using the translate feature on "X"):
Left-handed pitcher Roenis Elías will not be able to see action with our organization in the current season due to a ban from the Fubon Guardians, the team to which he belongs in the summer.
#INFOAGUILUCHA
— Águilas Cibaeñas (@aguilascibaenas) January 6, 2025
El lanzador zurdo Roenis Elías no podrá ver acción con nuestra organización en la actual temporada debido a una prohibición de los Fubon Guardians, equipo al cual pertenece en verano. pic.twitter.com/ty8WuOurdP
Elias spent parts of seven different seasons in the big leagues, including parts of five with the M's over three stints. Lifetime, he was 22-24, turning in a 22-23 record with the Mariners. Serving as both a starter and a reliever in his tenure, he started 53 games for Seattle. He made 125 total appearances. He won a career-high 10 games for the 2014 Mariners, also pitching to a 3.85 ERA.
He last appeared for the M's in 2022, pitching in seven games as the M's broke the lengthy playoff-drought. Since then, he has played in LIDOM and pitched in Triple-A for the Chicago Cubs. He also has spent parts of 2023 and 2024 in Korea, going 15-13 in the KBO. He pitched in four games in Mexico earlier this winter. He's also played for Team Cuba in the WBC (2023).
Elias isn't the only former Mariners player continuing to play overseas. Robinson Cano, Jean Segura and Carlos Peguero are playing in the Dominican.
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