The Mariners today provided an update on infielder Ryan Bliss, who was placed on the 10-day injured list yesterday with a torn left biceps. Today’s announcement relays that an MRI confirmed the severity of the tear and the need for surgery, with an expected recovery timeline of four to five months.
It’s obviously a frustrating development for Bliss and the club. It’s unclear if that timeline includes an eventual rehab assignment or if it will take that long just to begin rehabbing. Either way, he will miss the majority of the campaign even in a best-case scenario and it seems possible that he won’t return in 2025 at all.
For the team, it’s the second big blow to their position player group in the past few days. Víctor Robles has a shoulder fracture and is expected to miss about three months while avoiding surgery, though that timeline could change if surgery eventually is required. Now Bliss is also going to be sidelined for multiple months.
Lack of offense was an issue for them last year and their infield was particularly concerning. Justin Turner and Jorge Polanco became free agents at season’s end, with Josh Rojas non-tendered as well. That left them with J.P. Crawford at shortstop and a few role players or unestablished young guys as candidates for the other spots. There were many offseason rumors surrounding their infield pursuits but they only made a couple of modest moves, bringing back Polanco to play third and signing Donovan Solano to chip in at the corners in a part-time/platoon role.
That left second base open for internal options, including Bliss, a nice opportunity for him. He came into 2025 with just 33 major league games under his belt but some intriguing minor league numbers. Over 2023 and 2024, he produced a combined line of .290/.378/.497 for various minor league clubs. That production led to a wRC+ of 120, indicating he was 20% above league average. He also stole 105 bases in 133 tries. The M’s acquired him from the Diamondbacks as part of the July 2023 trade that sent Paul Sewald to the desert.
Bliss hit just .200/.282/.314 to start this year but in a small sample of just ten games. He won’t be able to adjust that line any time soon. Between him and Robles, the club has to improvise a new lineup around two vacancies. Polanco is battling some knee issues and has been serving as the designated hitter lately. Luke Raley has moved from first base to right field to replace Robles, with Rowdy Tellez taking over at first, platooning with Solano. Dylan Moore, Miles Mastrobuoni and Leo Rivas figure to cover third and second base, at least until Polanco can take the field again. Cole Young is one of the top prospects in the league and could take over the keystone at some point but he is hitting .171/.292/.244 through 11 Triple-A games to start the year.
All clubs deal with injuries but it’s perhaps a little more concerning for Seattle. They didn’t have many resources available for upgrading their lineup this winter, giving them a somewhat narrow margin for error to begin the year. They have now limped out to a 5-8 start and will be without two lineup regulars for multiple months. Bliss should be moved to the 60-day IL whenever the Mariners need a roster spot.
Photo courtesy of Joe Nicholson, Imagn Images