One Week Until Opening Day

 

Here we are down to the last week of spring training with opening day a week from now. Most of the roster already has been answered however bad news did come down on Wednesday when we heard that reliever David Phelps will be lost for the season and he will have to get Tommy John surgery on his elbow. Another one of those pitchers the Mariners have acquired the last couple years that didn’t work out like expected. I am sure everyone remembers Drew Smyly last year in spring training as well being lost for the season and now no longer a member of the Mariners organization.

So the question is who will replace him in the bullpen? Phelps was expected to be one of the top relievers first coming out for relief. He would pitch in either the sixth or seventh inning and he might pitch two innings if necessary. The pitcher I see replacing him that role right now is Dan Altavilla who has had a pretty good spring. He seems to be the logical guy to do so. Most likely he will pitch one inning when called upon however I am sure they may ask him to pitch a couple innings. I guess there are other candidates that the Mariners can throw out in Phelps’s spot however I don’t see anyone so talented or valuable to do so. Nick Vincent and Juan Nicasio are expected to share the eighth inning with Nicasio closing some games when Edwin Diaz is not available.

The only candidate still on the 40 man roster is Chasen Bradford and he hasn’t had a good spring training so what the Mariners brass think about him is questionable. The next reliever up is Ryan Cook who isn’t on the 40 man roster but didn’t fare so well in his last outing. The Mariners did pick up Erik Goeddel from the Texas Rangers on waivers however that isn’t exactly the kind of pitcher the Mariners want to be in the role Phelps was expected to pitch. I know that general manager Jerry Dipoto will look to see who else will be available from other teams however the best answer will be to get someone in a trade like they did for Phelps last year. Though they don’t have many prospects in the farm system I am sure they will have to give up a few.

Felix Hernandez is expected to pitch on Saturday and news came down that James Paxton will pitch on Sunday. Depending how well Felix does on Saturday will determine how far Paxton will go in Sunday’s game. It sounds like if Felix pitches well he will be the opening day starter because Paxton will only have three days of rest. He could only go a couple innings on Sunday if the Mariners don’t feel that Felix can be the opening day starter. I am sure everyone has an opinion who should start on opening day. There will be those who are Felix fans that he should open for the tenth straight year while others believe that Paxton is now the ace of the staff should start instead. Opening day we could consider as an honor but I am not sure it is that important since both Felix and Paxton will start the same amount of games if they stay healthy throughout the season.

With Paxton starting the second game being a left hander it would allow the Mariners to alternate between righties and lefties in the rotation. Mike Leake will likely be the third starter as long as Felix is ready to go and Marco Gonzales being a lefty will be the fourth starter. At this point we are not sure who will be the fifth starter but don’t have to be concerned about that until the middle of April. The main candidates look to be Ariel Miranda who is still on the roster and Rob Whalen who was optioned to Tacoma.

Looks like Mike Zunino is all set to start the season as he hit three home runs Wednesday night game against the Milwaukee Brewers. Actually he went four for four in that game so had a single after the three home runs. He started spring training slowly but now is top shape we just hope it goes into the season. It would be nice if the Mariners can get off to a good start in the season. I am not sure the last time the Mariners had a good April.

So Jerry Dipoto go out and get the best possible pitcher you can find to replace David Phelps. I am not too confident on the guys we have right now. At this point it is more important than getting another starter though I wish that was available as well. We just hope that we don’t get any more bad news about any other players. Go M’s.