ARLINGTON, Texas — For a team beset with injuries over the first month of the season, the Mariners are slowly starting to get healthier.
One much anticipated return became official on Saturday when the Mariners activated right-handed reliever Matt Brash, 360 days after his Tommy John surgery.
Another will take an important step forward Sunday when right-handed starter George Kirby make his first rehab start for Triple-A Tacoma in Las Vegas.
Kirby was shut down in early March with shoulder inflammation, but he reported feeling great after throwing his first live-batting practice the other day at T-Mobile Park. Kirby is expected to make at least two rehab starts with Tacoma to build up his pitch count to about 75, and the Mariners are hopeful he’ll be back in their rotation by the end of May.
The Mariners, meanwhile, remain in wait-and-see mode with their ace, Logan Gilbert, who was diagnosed a week ago with a Grade 1 flexor strain in his pitching elbow.
Gilbert, ordered to stop pitching for two weeks, did have a light game of catch in the outfield Saturday afternoon at Globe Life Field, with head trainer Kyle Torgerson watching intently.
Brash is available to pitch out of the M’s bullpen as soon as Saturday night. Troy Taylor was optioned back to Triple-A Tacoma to make room for Brash.
“He’s ready,” manager Dan Wilson said. “We’re confident. He’s confident. It’s really exciting.”
Brash’s family from Ontario, Canada, made the trip to Texas to be here with him this weekend.
“The butterflies are gonna be going and the adrenaline’s gonna be pumping,” Brash said. “There’s no other feeling that can prepare you for being on a big-league mound in a big spot. That’s probably the thing I’ve missed most, is that competitiveness and that adrenaline going and like helping the team and knowing that I’m doing my job to help us win games.”
The 26-year-old Brash had never had any kind of surgery before his elbow reconstruction procedure (performed, coincidentally, here in Arlington by Dr. Keith Meister, the Texas Rangers’ physician).
“I was asking a lot of older guys what it takes to get through this and get to the other side better,” Brash said Saturday. “And I just took it day by day. It’s hard to watch the games like I did last year and just wish I was out there, and then you kind of get down on yourself a little bit. But main thing is just go and do your work every day. Before I knew it, I was back throwing and then you’re throwing bullpens and you’re in games and spring training.
“So everything started to happen really fast, and I’m just super happy to be back and back with the boys in this locker room. The team’s rolling and I’m just happy to be part of it.”
In 2023, Brash emerged as one of the most dominant relievers in baseball, striking out 107 batters across 70 2/3 innings. His 78 appearances that season were the most of any pitcher in the majors.
In his six rehab outings with Tacoma over the past two weeks, Brash said he was throwing his “A1” stuff with full intensity. His repertoire now features a new changeup he plans to use.
“I’ve been feeling really good throughout the whole rehab process, so I’ve had no setbacks or limitations,” he said. “I’ve been looking sharp; I’ve been throwing strikes. So I expect to be how I was in ’23 — and maybe better.”
Wilson said he will be mindful with how he uses Brash, and how often. It’s unlikely Brash will pitch on back-to-back days for awhile.