Drayer: This season, the Mariners replace hope with expectations<\/a><\/p>\n When discussing the Mariners\u2019 starting rotation on Seattle Sports\u2019 Brock and Salk on Wednesday, Passan detailed why 2026 could have a major impact on the right-hander\u2019s future, whether that\u2019s in Seattle or he eventually goes somewhere else.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n \u201cLogan Gilbert (is) two years from free agency now, and I think that he understands having a big season this year is going to go a long way to getting him paid the way that he wants to get paid,\u201d Passan said. \u201cWhether that\u2019s with the Mariners or not, I don\u2019t know. There have been discussions there. They haven\u2019t, frankly, gotten all that close to a deal coming together. But at the same time, I know Logan Gilbert would like to stick around. I also know that the lure of free agency as those arbitration years go by grows and grows for players.\u201d<\/p>\n Gilbert, 28, has established himself as a top-of-the-rotation arm during his five seasons in a Mariners uniform. The 2018 first-round pick has a career 3.58 ERA and 1.058 WHIP with a 47-36 record and 884 strikeouts over 835 1\/3 innings in 146 starts. He\u2019s also proven to be durable with only one stint on the injured list since making his major league debut on May 13, 2021.<\/p>\n His best season came in 2024 when he earned an All-Star nod and finished sixth American League Cy Young voting. Gilbert led the league with 208 2\/3 innings pitched and a 0.887 WHIP while posting a 9-12 record, 3.23 ERA and a career-high 220 strikeouts.<\/p>\n Gilbert is set to be the first of the homegrown starters who dot the Mariners\u2019 rotation to hit free agency. Passan believes he also fits the modern archetype of a starting pitcher more than any others from the group.<\/p>\n \u201cYou see (George) Kirby up to 99 (mph), frankly he was sitting 98 to 99, with the pinpoint-accurate command that he\u2019s got. It\u2019s extraordinary to watch. (Bryan) Woo is just so efficient, and I love watching Bryan Woo pitch just because it\u2019s easy, it\u2019s simple, it\u2019s repeatable and the way he keeps hitters off balance is great,\u201d Passan said.<\/p>\n \u201cBut if you were to build like an archetypal modern pitcher, Logan Gilbert is right up there with the best of them. He\u2019s got the size, he\u2019s got the pitch ability, he\u2019s got the confidence not just to throw his stuff but to learn new pitches and unleash them in game, and he is always evolving. That\u2019s a sort of a new thing over the last decade or so.\u201d<\/p>\n Hear the full conversation at this link<\/a> or in the audio player near the top of this story. Listen to Brock and Salk weekdays from 6-10 a.m. or find the podcast on the Seattle Sports app.\u00a0<\/p>\n More on the Seattle Mariners<\/p>\n \u2022 Cable TV channels for Mariners games this season are set<\/a>
\u2022 Seattle Mariners unveil opening day roster and who\u2019s on IL<\/a>
\u2022 Drayer: The state of the Mariners as camp breaks for opening day<\/a>
\u2022\u00a0Morosi: Mariners made the right decision on Mitch Garver<\/a>
\u2022\u00a0How prospect expert views Seattle Mariners OF Lazaro Monte<\/a><\/p>\n
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