Mariners claim pitcher Taylor Williams off waivers from Brewers
Feb 21, 2020, 11:39 AM | Updated: 2:08 pm
New Mariners RHP Taylor Williams, a Washington native, has 71 career MLB appearances. (Getty)
(Getty)
The Mariners have a new face joining the competition to make their pitching staff.
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Seattle claimed right-handed pitcher Taylor Williams off waivers from the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday, designating fellow righty Phillips Valdez for assignment to create room on the roster.
Williams is a local product who was born in Vancouver, Wash., and attended Camas High School. A fourth-round pick of the Brewers in the 2013 MLB Draft out of Kent State, he has pitched in parts of the past three seasons for Milwaukee. Prior to attending Kent State, he began his college career at WSU and also spent time at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Ore.
The 28 year old has a career 2-4 record with a 5.23 ERA over 72 1/3 innings in the big leagues, coming exclusively in relief appearances. He also has a 9.5 strikeouts per nine innings ratio.
While Williams has experience starting in the minors, he hasn’t started a pro game since 2017.
Valdéz, also 28, also came to the Mariners this offseason on a waiver claim. He had a 3.94 ERA in 16 innings pitched for Texas in 2019, his first MLB season, striking out 18 while walking nine.
The Mariners could be looking for Williams to be a multi-innings option out of the bullpen, something they plan to use in 2020 to help out a starting rotation that will likely feature multiple rookies and two pitchers coming back from Tommy John surgery. In 10 games with Milwaukee in 2019, he made three appearances of two innings or more, including a four-inning outing on May 4 against the New York Mets in which he gave up just one earned run and took the win.
Seattle is set to begin Cactus League play at 12:10 p.m. Saturday, serving as the home team against the San Diego Padres at the Peoria Sports Complex in Peoria, Ariz., which both the M’s and Padres call their home for spring training. The game will air live on 710 ESPN Seattle, with coverage starting at noon.
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