Mariners' Baseball Ops Leader Talks About Big Decision to Fast Track Top Prospect
Earlier this week, it was announced that the Seattle Mariners were fast-tracking top pitching prospect Logan Evans to the big leagues.
The starter, who has torn up Double-A Arkansas this season, is going to be moved to the bullpen with the hopes of him helping the M's at the big league level down the stretch.
In an interview with the Seattle Times, Mariners' President of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto discussed why the team is making this move with Evans.
Per Adam Jude of the Seattle Times:
Jerry Dipoto on converting Logan Evans to the bullpen:
“He go could out and ‘Bob Gibson’ the Texas League or we could see if he could help us here.”
Jerry Dipoto on converting Logan Evans to the bullpen:
— Adam Jude (@A_Jude) June 7, 2024
“He go could out and ‘Bob Gibson’ the Texas League or we could see if he could help us here.” https://t.co/wH0gXgn1Au
Evans just made his first relief appearance of the season the other day in Arkansas. He's 6-2 this year with a 1.18 ERA. He's struck out 48 batters in 53.1 innings. In order to be ready to make the big leagues, Evans likely needs to clear multiple bullpen hurdles. He needs to prove that he can work back-to-back days, that he can perhaps work at higher velocities over shorter time periods and that he can maybe even work multiple innings in one outing and bounce back for another in short order.
Furthermore, there are other things at play:
1) The Mariners need bullpen help: As the Mariners chase another playoff berth this year, and possibly the organization's first World Series crown, they need more arms in the bullpen. With Matt Brash out for the season and Gregory Santos having not thrown yet this year for the team, the bullpen is a bit wobbly - and that's before Andres Munoz's troublesome back injury cropped up this week. If the team can upgrade the pen without having to spend money or prospect capital to do it, it makes sense.
2) It will limit Evans's innings: This decision also will help keep Evans fresh in the long run. The 23-year-old only threw 15.0 professional innings in 2023 and has already thrown 53.1 this year. Going to the bullpen will allow him to pitch, while not running him completely into the ground.
3) The M's have done this before: The team moved Matt Brash from the starting rotation to the bullpen in 2022 and before that, they moved Edwin Diaz from the rotation to the bullpen in the minor leagues. Dipoto and Co. have executed this playbook before. Brash and Diaz both became elite relievers once the switch was made - although Evans still likely profiles as a starter moving forward.
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