Mariners GM gives updates on rash of injured players

The Seattle Mariners have been hit especially hard by the injury bug this season.

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Here’s the latest on the team’s slew of injured players, based on general manager Justin Hollander’s injury update ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Toronto Blue Jays.

• Right-handed starter George Kirby, who was shut down in spring training with shoulder inflammation in his pitching arm, will make his second rehab start with Triple-A Tacoma on Saturday. Hollander said Kirby will likely need three rehab starts before the Mariners consider activating him.

Hollander said Kirby’s first rehab start this past Sunday was very encouraging. He said Kirby’s fastball was up to 96-98 mph and his secondary pitches were in “midseason form.”

“It was awesome,” Hollander said. “… Tons of strikes. It was really efficient, really good. Very excited. And he felt great afterward, which is the most encouraging thing.”

• Right-handed starter Logan Gilbert, who landed on the injured list two weeks ago with a flexor strain in his pitching elbow, began some light throwing last week. Hollander said Gilbert was slated to play catch again on Friday. If all goes well, Hollander said Gilbert could throw off a mound by the middle of next week.

“Really feel good about where he’s at and how he’s progressed,” Hollander said.

• First baseman/outfielder Luke Raley, who suffered a Grade 1 right oblique strain during batting practice on April 29, will head to the team’s facility in Arizona next week to rehab. Hollander previously said Raley will need at least six weeks from the injury before he can begin a rehab assignment.

“I don’t have a timeline yet, but he’s progressing well,” Hollander said. “Sometimes with obliques, especially as hard as Luke swings, you want to balance how he’s feeling with risking re-injury. So it’ll be a while still, but he’s progressing really well.”

• Outfielder Victor Robles will undergo a CT scan next weekend, which will mark six weeks since he dislocated his left shoulder and fractured a bone in his shoulder while making a spectacular catch on April 6. If the CT scan shows everything is healing well, Hollander said Robles can begin the process of regaining strength in his shoulder.

“My understanding from talking to our medical people is that strength and mobility need to happen over the next six weeks from that point,” Hollander said. “When you’re immobilized for that long – when you have that traumatic type of injury in your shoulder – it just takes time for those to come back.

“So we’ll reassess along the way, but everything so far has looked good, and we’ll see where it’s at on the six-week CT scan.”

• Right-handed reliever Gregory Santos underwent a cleanup knee surgery on April 29. Hollander said the Mariners are targeting the All-Star break in mid-July as a realistic return date.

“This was more of a cleanup,” Hollander said. “If he were to have a setback or it wouldn’t go well, we’d be talking about something different than a cleanup. So we want to make sure that we’re giving it the best possible chance to last for a while and not have it be a quick setback because he pushes too fast, too soon.”

• Right-handed reliever Jackson Kowar is heading to Triple-A Tacoma to begin a rehab assignment. Hollander said Kowar will pitch out of the bullpen on a regular schedule for the rest of May before the team looks at an activation time.

Kowar, who last pitched for the Kansas City Royals in 2023, is recovering from Tommy John surgery after getting hurt in 2024 spring training.

“He’s doing great,” Hollander said. “Stuff looks awesome. … Very few speed bumps along the way and really feel good about where his stuff is at, where his endurance is at. So super excited.”

• Right-handed reliever Trent Thornton underwent surgery on Thursday night for appendicitis and was placed on the IL Friday.

“He’ll be down a few weeks,” Hollander said. “We don’t have an exact time frame. Some of that will be determined by how quickly he can resume throwing. … Probably more in the three-week range before he’s up and ready to go and consider an option in the big leagues again.

“It was an unpleasant surprise, but obviously glad he got to the doctor when he did.”

• Left-handed reliever Tayler Saucedo is on the injured list at Triple-A Tacoma with a strained lat on his left side.

“Fortunately, it seems like we avoided a really bad outcome,” Hollander said. “He’ll be down for a couple weeks and then go back up from there. … And then once he feels good, we can start throwing again.”

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