The Mariners announced that right-hander Jesse Hahn and left-hander Drew Pomeranz were both released from their minor league contracts. Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times notes that both pitchers had enough service time to request releases if they weren’t going to make the Mariners’ Opening Day roster.
Pomeranz and Hahn have a combined 18 years of MLB experience between them, but the two veterans haven’t appeared in a big league game since the 2021 season. Hahn didn’t pitch whatsoever in 2022 or 2023 while apparently recovering from a shoulder injury, but he resurfaced to toss 50 1/3 minor league innings with the Triple-A affiliates of the Dodgers and Mariners in 2024. Hahn’s combined 4.29 ERA and 25.1% strikeout rate were respectable enough, but he also had an outsized 17.2% walk rate.
Injuries have dominated Pomeranz’s career narrative, and a variety of health issues (most notably a flexor tendon surgery) limited him to 19 1/3 minor league innings over the last three seasons. He did sign a Major League deal with the Giants last May but didn’t see any action at the MLB level, as he was designated for assignment and then outrighted off the 40-man within a few days of joining the team. An All-Star starter back in 2016, Pomeranz seemed to be on the verge of re-inventing himself as an elite relief arm, leading to a four-year, $32MM deal from the Padres in the 2019-20 offseason. Unfortunately, continued health problems kept Pomeranz from living up that salary, even though he had a 1.62 ERA over the 44 1/3 innings he was able to pitch in 2020-21.
Neither Hahn or Pomeranz posted particularly good Cactus League numbers, leaving the Mariners looking elsewhere for bullpen help. Right-hander Casey Legumina was also optioned to Triple-A, so Carlos Vargas will break camp as the final member of Seattle’s bullpen. Divish observes that Vargas’ out-of-options status might’ve helped the team’s decision, as Legumina has options remaining and can be more easily shuttled on and off the roster.