Seattle Mariners

Seattle Mariners starter James Paxton could be done for the season.

MLB Network's Jon Heyman reported Thursday that Tommy John surgery "has been recommended" for the 32-year-old, who was moved to the 10-day injured list with a forearm injury on Wednesday. 

Paxton threw 24 pitches in his first start of the year, a Tuesday loss to the Chicago White Sox.

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According to an Associated Press (h/t ESPN) report from Wednesday, Paxton—as well as starting left fielder Jake Fraley, who was moved to the injured list with a hamstring strain—had MRIs done on Wednesday. 

"Leaving last night he was a little bit more optimistic that it wasn't anything too serious. I know he woke up today and it's stiff as expected," Seattle manager Scott Servais said of Paxton. "Really, it's hard to speculate until you know exactly what's going on there and the only way you're going to know is you get the reading on the MRI." 

Paxton made five starts for the New York Yankees in 2020, posting a career-worst 6.64 ERA through 20.1 innings, though his outings were bookended by injuries. He joined the team in July after having spinal surgery in February 2020, but he suffered a low-grade forearm flexor strain and did not play after Aug. 20.

Prior to his injury woes, he went 15-6 through 29 starts with a 3.82 ERA for the Yankees in 2019. 

He signed with the Mariners on a one-year, $8.5 million deal this offseason, returning to the team that drafted him. Servais was hopeful that the team's fourth-round pick from 2010 would have another strong season in his return to the team where spent the first six years of his career.

"This season, where we're at, where Pax is that, I think it's a great fit," Servais said in February. "He's got a chance to kind of reestablish himself as maybe one of the top 10 starters in our league. He's certainly got the stuff to do that and now we've got to keep him healthy and allow him to do it."

The Mariners recalled righthander Ljay Newsome from their alternate training site, while Nick Margevicius will slot into the starting lineup, at least temporarily. 

Seattle Mariners pitcher Marco Gonzales is leaning into comments that led to the resignation of team CEO and president Kevin Mather.

Gonzales, who Mather said was "very boring" during a Rotary Club meeting in February, updated his Twitter bio to reflect the departed executive's opinion of him.

Marco Gonzales has changed his Twitter bio. pic.twitter.com/etoshbtPk0

— Robert Murray (@ByRobertMurray) February 23, 2021

ESPN's Jeff Passan summarized the incident, which occurred Feb. 5: 

"Mather disparaged a Japanese player [Hisashi Iwakuma] for not learning English, belittled a star prospect from the Dominican Republic [Julio Rodriguez] for his language skills and derided another top prospect [Jarred Kelenic] while admitting to manipulating his service time. He called his team's best pitcher [Marco Gonzales] 'very boring' and embellished the pitcher's actions in a clubhouse incident, told another falsehood about a well-respected veteran [Mitch Haniger] and complained that the franchise's best player over the past decade [Kyle Seager] was 'overpaid.'"

MLB, the Major League Baseball Players Association and the Mariners issued statements, while reporters and members of the organization came to the defense of Rodriguez, a 20-year-old outfielder who was ranked as the team's No. 2 prospect in 2020.

@J_RODshow helped my Mom pass her Spanish assignment when she was doing chemotherapy and every time we talk, he asks how she is doing. Also, when he asks, it’s in perfectly spoken English. I’m grateful to have someone like him representing our organization. 🤘🏼 https://t.co/AwHd73l2oJ

— Austin Shenton (@Austin_Shenton) February 22, 2021

Rodriguez, like Gonzales, took to Twitter to respond to Mather's comments.

pic.twitter.com/rjjAhHQDpo

— Julio Rodriguez🇩🇴🦁 (@JRODshow44) February 21, 2021

Mather, who had been with the Mariners since 1996 and has previously been accused of harassment by female employees, said his comments came amid a "lapse in judgement" and he would "do whatever it takes to repair the damage I have caused to the Seattle Mariners organization" (h/t Tim Booth of the Associated Press). 

Kevin Mather resigned as president and CEO of the Seattle Mariners on Monday after inflammatory comments he made earlier this month came to light.

General manager Jerry Dipoto discussed the consequences of Mather's actions in a video call with reporters Tuesday:

"I'm embarrassed that this is the way we're viewed because for those of you who've been around me or [manager Scott Servais] or this team, this is not how we're wired. It's embarrassing to be categorized or deal with the stigma that we are now pinned with, and we have to shed it. It's ours to bear and we now have to be accountable to that, and then find a way to grow beyond it."

Speaking to a Rotary Club, Mather criticized certain players' ability to speak English and admitted to manipulating service time, according to a transcript provided by Grant Bronsdon and Kate Preusser of Lookout Landing.

Several of the players Mather discussed are still with the organization, including Dominican prospect Julio Rodriguez. Mather called Rodriguez "loud" and said, "His English is not tremendous."

As well, Mather said the Mariners kept top prospects like Jarred Kelenic and Logan Gilbert off the major league roster last season to extend team control: "There was no chance you were going to see these young players at T-Mobile Park. We weren't going to put them on the 40-man roster, we weren't going to start the service time clock."

He also called veteran third baseman Kyle Seager "overpaid."

"I'd say that the temperature was very hot with a number of guys that certainly their names were mentioned for a number of different reasons," Servais said Tuesday. "It wasn't surprising at all."

The Major League Baseball Players' Association had harsh words for Seattle Mariners CEO Kevin Mather, who made a number of controversial and offensive comments about various players during a Rotary Club meeting in early February, before he resigned on Monday.

James Wagner of the New York Times shared the MLBPA statement:

The MLB players’ union released the following statement about Seattle Mariners CEO Kevin Mather’s rotary club video: pic.twitter.com/4Gk1PcPzgZ

— James Wagner (@ByJamesWagner) February 22, 2021

Major League Baseball also condemned Mather's comments:

A statement from MLB: pic.twitter.com/UXAPCQVzqb

— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) February 22, 2021

Jeff Passan of ESPN broke down the various comments Mather made during the meeting:

"Mather disparaged a Japanese player [Hisashi Iwakuma] for not learning English, belittled a star prospect from the Dominican Republic [Julio Rodriguez] for his language skills and derided another top prospect [Jarred Kelenic] while admitting to manipulating his service time. He called his team's best pitcher [Marco Gonzales] 'very boring' and embellished the pitcher's actions in a clubhouse incident, told another falsehood about a well-respected veteran [Mitch Haniger] and complained that the franchise's best player over the past decade [Kyle Seager] was 'overpaid.'"

Prospect Austin Shenton publicly came to the defense of Rodriguez following Mather's comments:

@J_RODshow helped my Mom pass her Spanish assignment when she was doing chemotherapy and every time we talk, he asks how she is doing. Also, when he asks, it’s in perfectly spoken English. I’m grateful to have someone like him representing our organization. 🤘🏼 https://t.co/AwHd73l2oJ

— Austin Shenton (@Austin_Shenton) February 22, 2021

The situation came to a head Monday, however, when Mather resigned:

pic.twitter.com/IiAZDtePdJ

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) February 22, 2021

Mather had categorized his Rotary Club speech as a "lapse in judgment" in an apology he issued after the comments, saying before his resignation that he "committed to make amends" and would "do whatever it takes to repair the damage I have caused to the Seattle Mariners organization."

"My comments were my own," he added. "They do not reflect the views and strategy of the Mariners baseball leadership who are responsible for decisions about the development and status of the players at all levels of the organization."

Now, Mather no longer represents the Mariners either. 

Seattle Mariners president Kevin Mather apologized Sunday after comments he made to the Bellevue Breakfast Rotary Club on a number of topics drew widespread criticism.

"My comments were my own," Mather said. "They do not reflect the views and strategy of the Mariners baseball leadership who are responsible for decisions about the development and status of the players at all levels of the organization.

"I've been on the phone most of the day today apologizing to the many people I have insulted, hurt, or disappointed in speaking at a recent online event."

Statement from Kevin Mather pic.twitter.com/R2PugeImF6

— Ryan Divish (@RyanDivish) February 22, 2021

Lookout Landing's Grant Bronsdon and Kate Preusser shared a full transcript from Mather's appearance. His most inflammatory remarks were arguably centered on former starting pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma and Julio Rodriguez, whom MLB.com ranks as the fifth-best prospect in baseball.

Mather expressed frustration with how the Mariners paid $75,000 for an interpreter to help the Japanese-born Iwakuma deal with the language barrier. He said Iwakuma's English "suddenly got better" when informed the team wouldn't pay to have an interpreter work with him upon returning to the organization in a support role.

Mather went on to call Rodriguez "loud" and said his English "is not tremendous." Others who have encountered the 20-year-old painted a different picture:

As someone who has spent time talking to Julio Rodríguez in both English and Spanish, I can say -- without a shadow of a doubt -- that classifying his English as "not tremendous" is a pretty massive understatement. Unfair and inaccurate comment, IMO

— Alex Coffey (@byalexcoffey) February 21, 2021

Julio's English is superb and one of the most impressive things about him. Here's what I wrote in 2019: pic.twitter.com/N69ZqFcRfE

— Larry Stone (@StoneLarry) February 22, 2021

https://twitter.com/TylerMaun/status/1363655841870536711

Rodriguez appeared to reference the situation on social media:

pic.twitter.com/rjjAhHQDpo

— Julio Rodriguez🇩🇴🦁 (@JRODshow44) February 21, 2021

He wasn't the only centerpiece of the Mariners' future Mather spoke of in somewhat critical terms.

Mather said Seattle offered a long-term contract to Jarred Kelenic that extended beyond the team's six years of control. Kelenic, who's fourth on MLB.com's top prospects list, turned down the deal, and Mather implied the Mariners would manipulate his service time by keeping him in the minors to open the 2021 season.

https://twitter.com/keithlaw/status/1363655311161253889

The heat Mather is presently facing is unlikely to go away because of his apology.

The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal argued he "needs to be fired by the time you read this" and that "there is no turning back from this nonsense."

Left-handed starting pitcher James Paxton has agreed to return to the Seattle Mariners, per Chad Dey of Sportsnet 650.

Paxton, who was a free agent this offseason, played in Seattle from 2013-2018, going 41-26 with a 3.42 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP and 617 strikeouts in 582.1 innings.

He was traded to the New York Yankees before the 2019 season, spending two years in the Bronx before hitting free agency this offseason.

The Mariners hope that Paxton will return to his old form in Seattle after the southpaw posted a 6.64 ERA in five starts last year. A flexor strain in his left arm kept him sidelined for much of the year and hindered his on-field results, but Paxton is quite sharp at his best, and a return to Seattle could rejuvenate his career.

With the Paxton signing, RosterResource (h/t FanGraphs) lists six potential starting pitchers for Seattle in the following order: Marco Gonzales, Paxton, Yusei Kikuchi, Justus Sheffield, Chris Flexen and Justin Dunn. Gonzales, Paxton and Sheffield are southpaws.

Seattle is looking to make the playoffs for the first time since 2001. The Mariners nearly did so last year, falling two games shy of the eighth and final playoff spot in the American League.

MLB will revert to its old playoff format with five teams per league advancing to October baseball next season, so it'll be harder for Seattle to reach playoff contention.

However, a promising lineup featuring AL Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis and a rotation bolstered by Paxton's presence could put Seattle in the playoff conversation into the fall.  

Starting pitcher James Paxton is moving on from the New York Yankees and returning to the Seattle Mariners, agreeing to a contract Saturday, according Sportsnet's Chad Dey. 

Left-handed James Paxton and the Seattle Mariners are in agreement on a one-year deal for $8.5 million. Has some reachable bonuses that could take it to $10 million.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 14, 2021

Paxton started five games for the Yankees in 2020, going 20.1 innings with a 6.64 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 26 strikeouts and seven walks. A flexor strain derailed his season in August as New York once again played through a plethora of injuries. 

With Paxton entering his age 32 season, his agent, Scott Boras, said the lefty rushed a return from February 2020 back surgery but will be ready to go for the 2021 season.

Boras told Brendan Kuty of NJ Advance Media in October:

"The truth of the matter was, his ability to be James Paxton, it just needed a few months more of rehab on his back and his strength. Getting the velocity, getting the balance and being able to torque his back the way it was, just after the surgery, he just needed time. That's all. We're seeing him back to normal now in his throwing. You can really see the difference."

The Mariners apparently agree with Boras' assessment as they added Paxton back to their rotation after his first stint with the club lasted from 2013 to 2018. 

The deal comes on the heels of a one-year, $12.5 million contract Paxton agreed to last year to remain in New York and avoid arbitration.

The Seattle Mariners reportedly added a proven closer to their bullpen Thursday when they signed Ken Giles.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic and MyNorthwest.com's Shannon Drayer reported the news, noting it is a two-year deal. The right-hander will be available in 2022 after he recovers from Tommy John surgery.

Giles is a notable addition but comes with health concerns since he pitched just 3.2 innings in 2020 for the Toronto Blue Jays and underwent that surgery.

The 30-year-old spent time on the injured list because of right elbow inflammation in 2019, but it wasn't that long ago he was one of the best closers in the league. He impressed in 2019 with a 1.87 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 83 strikeouts and 23 saves in 53 innings, which was a far cry from his 2018 effort.

He started the 2018 campaign on the Houston Astros before they traded him to Toronto during a season that saw him post a 4.65 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 53 strikeouts in 50.1 innings for both teams.

Giles didn't look like the same pitcher who helped lead the Astros to a World Series title in 2017 with a 2.30 ERA and who finished with a sub-2.00 ERA in his first two seasons in the league (2014 and 2015) with the Philadelphia Phillies.

A return to dominance in 2019 likely convinced the Mariners to take a chance on him with this deal, and this is a low-risk, high-reward move with the hopes he will bounce back from his serious setback.

Giles is at least familiar with postseason pressure from the 2017 World Series run and could help his new team control the late innings at the back end of the bullpen when he does return.

Seattle Mariners center fielder and American League Rookie of the Year Kyle Lewis took part in a B/R AMA on Friday and answered questions ranging from his reaction to winning the ROY award to comments on how Mariners legends Ken Griffey Jr. and Ichiro Suzuki have helped his career. 

You can find the questions and answers below.

            

@BayLegend: What was your reaction to winning Rookie of the Year?

Like a kid in a candy store. Felt like the first day of school or something—had my college friends, a childhood coach, and some older friends too from elementary school.

           

@BillsCavs4L: Did you have a welcome to the league moment?

My first game the first ball they hit to me I dove and whiffed it completely and gave up a triple. Fans were booing me. Then I went deep in the fifth inning. It was a rollercoaster of a day.

           

@ediam18: Who's the best pitcher you faced and best hitter you played against this season?

That's a tough one. Clayton Kershaw was an honor to face and Albert Pujols is a legend and hit a homer against us. You don't want to root for the other team, but that was an honor to watch.

         

@jtorres38: Any predictions on when the Mariners break the playoff drought?

My bold prediction is next year we make the playoffs. We've said that every year for the last 20 years so we'll hang our hat on next year.

         

@yankeek: Who was your role model growing up?

My parents and any athletic outfielder was my role model. I switched every year. Griffey, Carlos Gonzalez, Adam Jones, Matt Kemp.

        

@DekeGeke: What is your advice for young sluggers?

Swing as hard as you can, work on being explosive and athletic and you have a good chance to figure out the rest on the back end.

        

@IsaakHammersborg: Chick-fil-A or Popeyes?

CFA any day of the week.

         

@EMONEY69: How has Griffey been an influence to you?

Griffey's been a mentor to me since I got drafted to Seattle, we talk every year. Definitely a big motivation, somebody I've looked up to. Always has a listening ear and some advice. He's been helpful in every way that he can be. His main advice is to stay locked in. Don't ever take your foot off the gas. No matter how good it's going or how bad it's going, you gotta stay locked in and keep your foot on the gas. The moment you think it's coming easy to you is when it will humble you, and that's what he's always said.

       

@caidenbell26: How does it feel being the first Mariner since Ichiro to win ROY?

Man it feels special, there's nothing like that. Nothing I could have dreamed of or compared that to. I definitely know now it creates big shoes to fill heading into next year. I've been able to interact with Ichiro and he helped me out in the outfield. It's a surreal feeling being around him.

           

@FoldforFields: Who was your celebrity crush growing up?

Aye when I was really young it would have been Lauren London, Christina Milian, Jessica Alba, I had a few.

         

@brobinson44: Do you have a big sneaker collection or are you not much of a sneaker guy?

I have a huge sneaker showcase room in my house. I got all the Jordans. Every person that comes over I make sure we stop and take a tour of the Jordans for 30 minutes. It's a little walk through the history books.

         

@yankeek: If you could play with any player from the past, who would it be?

Griffey just because I want to see what a person of that star power does to a city.

        

@smonahan: How different was it playing without fans this year?

Bizarre. Once the game started it was kinda normal. The whole setup was bizarre though for sure.

         

@THChawks: What are your top three goals for next season?

Playoffs at the top. Me personally, cut down strikeouts, and stay healthy all year.

       

@donirosenfeld93: What was the biggest adjustment to the MLB for you?

I think the mental side of being able to handle expectations, media, playing against legends and stars you looked up to. How do you bring it back to your skillset and what works for you.

        

@yankeek: What were your emotions when you made that leaping catch?

Blacked out man. In shock. Adrenaline just took over and I didn't have time to even think about it.

            

Rapid Fire Questions

Favorite play ever?

My first career home run off Trevor Bauer.

       

Favorite food?

Crab legs.

      

Favorite movie ever?

Shooter. Mark Wahlberg.

     

Favorite TV show ever?

Suits.

      

Favorite sneaker ever?

Flu Game 12s.

Seattle Mariners infielder and outfielder Dee Gordon told the team he wants to go by Dee Strange-Gordon going forward, per Greg Johns of MLB.com, in honor of his late mother DeVona Strange, who was killed when he was seven.

Strange was shot and killed by her boyfriend, Lynford Schultz, who served five years in prison for manslaughter. 

Strange-Gordon told B/R's Scott Miller in 2019 that Devaris Strange-Gordon is his legal name, but after a public address announcer in rookie ball badly mispronounced his full name, he asked to just be called Dee Gordon.

"She had this beautiful smile, man," Strange-Gordon told Miller of his mom. "I thought she was the most beautiful woman in the world. She was so sweet."

"Now that I'm an adult, I know all she did for me."

Strange-Gordon is in the middle of his 10th season in the majors. The 32-year-old debuted for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2011 and has played for three franchises in his career. He has spent the past three seasons with the Mariners.