SEATTLE -- Just one day into the regular season, the Mariners’ bullpen has taken its first hit.
The club announced before Friday’s game vs. the Guardians that it placed high-velocity right-hander Carlos Vargas on the 15-day injured list with a right lat strain.
In a corresponding move, right-hander Cole Wilcox was recalled from Triple-A Tacoma, on the heels of a solid Spring Training that saw him break camp as the first arm on the outside looking in on the 26-man roster.
Because Vargas did not pitch in Seattle’s 6-4 loss on Thursday, the transaction is retroactive to Tuesday. However, lat strains typically come with more extended periods of rest, recovery and rehab. The Mariners haven’t put a timeline on his return, but at least a few weeks would be a good estimate.
Vargas first experienced the issue during catch play on Thursday, the timing of which led to the club essentially pitching a man down. And that further explains some of the bullpen management under manager Dan Wilson, who turned to Seattle’s lowest-leverage relievers -- Casey Legumina and Cooper Criswell, respectively -- while the club was trailing by one run for the eighth and ninth innings.
Those were the type of pockets where Vargas would’ve probably been deployed.
Part of that calculus could’ve also been correlated to the club wanting to mitigate usage for leverage reliever Matt Brash, and more specifically, by deploying him in tie games or with a lead in this extremely early stretch. Brash, who is entering his first full season since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2024, made just four Cactus League appearances as part of a by-design slow buildup.
The Mariners will likely also be more delicate, at least early, with relievers Eduard Bazardo and Gabe Speier, who pitched career-high workloads last season and threw extremely high-stress pitches in the postseason. Andrés Muñoz was used exclusively in save situations for virtually all of last season, and he’s reiterated that the clarity of that role was a big positive.
“Some of that's assessed on how they feel [each day],” Wilson said, “but those things obviously ebb and flow throughout the season, too. And early in the year, sometimes guys feel strong, but you still want to be careful in some ways.”
Vargas pitched in nine Cactus outings, including the finale on Monday before the team charter to Seattle. He surrendered seven runs (six earned) over 8 1/3 innings with six strikeouts and three walks.
Wilcox, 26, joined the organization via a Nov. 5 trade with Tampa Bay in exchange for cash considerations, and was one of their more productive relievers in camp. But because he had three Minor League options remaining, his roster flexibility was a factor in him not breaking camp.
Over eight Cactus outings, Wilcox averaged 97.3 mph on his sinker, which is his primary pitch, but he also toyed with a kick-changeup.
“A lot more depth, it's definitely a four[-seam] grip,” Wilcox said. “But the more you throw it, like anything, it gets a little more comfortable.”
Wilcox was teammates with Emerson Hancock at the University of Georgia and was selected in the same MLB Draft, in 2020 and at No. 80 overall in the third round by the Padres. That year’s Draft was truncated from 40 rounds to five, leading many to assume that Wilcox would return to Georgia before San Diego swooped in with a signing bonus well above slot value, at $3.3 million. At the time, it was the richest deal for a third-round pick.
Later that year, Wilcox was among the four players that the Padres sent to the Rays in the blockbuster to acquire Seattle-area native Blake Snell. Wilcox spent the following five seasons in the Minors before making his MLB debut last Sept. 19. He was then designated for assignment as part of Tampa Bay’s 40-man roster clearing early in the offseason.
And that’s when he landed on Seattle’s radar, which is always partial to former top Draft picks -- especially pitchers -- and giving them a fresh look.