SEATTLE -- Throughout their optimism as he recovered from pectoral inflammation, the Mariners had also been bracing for the possibility that they’d be without Bryan Woo for the American League Division Series.
And that did indeed become the case, as Woo was left off the club’s 26-man roster for the best-of-five round against the Tigers, as announced on Saturday morning before Game 1.
“Obviously, a tough decision and one that we weighed very carefully,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “But we just felt like he had made strides as we had hoped and got to a place, but it just looked like it wasn't going to be able to be in this series.”
Woo, a 2025 All-Star and Seattle’s best starter this season, will not be eligible to pitch again unless the Mariners reach the AL Championship Series, should the Mariners advance, though Wilson said the hope was the 25-year-old right-hander would indeed be ready for such a situation.
“I know that's tough on Bryan,” Wilson said. “He's had an incredible season, and wants to be out there competing. You know that. You see that in him, but wanting to do it and make sure he's healthy to a point where he can do that is our priority, and right now it kind of looks like we're hoping at some point in the ALCS.”
Woo threw a higher-intensity bullpen session and simulated game against live batters at T-Mobile Park on Thursday, in full uniform, and spoke positively about it after. But he stopped short when directly asked if he was optimistic about being on the ALDS roster.
In that throwing session, Woo wasn’t quite at 100% exertion -- but he expressed hope to reach that target soon. On Saturday, Wilson said that Woo hadn’t suffered any setbacks in his recovery, and after a rest day Friday, was back on a normal throwing schedule.
And he was seen playing catch in the outfield with the rest of the Mariners’ pitching staff in the outfield hours before Game 1.
“I’m still not where I want to be in terms of game speed of everything,” Woo said Thursday. “But in terms of how everything has progressed, I’m happy with it. Considering that a week ago, I wasn’t even throwing yet -- and then a week from now, hopefully we’ll be in a better spot.”
Woo led the Mariners’ rotation in innings (186 2/3), strikeouts (198), WHIP (0.93) and ERA (2.94) while posting a 128 ERA+ (league average is 100).
Woo’s status was also part of the club’s consideration in slotting George Kirby and Luis Castillo in Games 1 and 2, respectively, with Logan Gilbert the favorite to start Game 3 -- though Wilson stopped short of confirming as much Saturday. And now that they know they’ll be without Woo, the Game 4 assignment -- should the series reach that point -- all of a sudden has more urgency.
Presumably, Bryce Miller would be available for that start, but he’s also been preparing for a possible transition to the bullpen in this shorter series. It’s possible that his usage in relief could be impacted if he’s indeed needed to start Game 4.
“The hope was that we were going to have Bryce in the bullpen,” Wilson said. “So we'll just have to kind of weigh that versus whether or not he's going to have to start down the line. So we'll keep looking at it and keep watching it as we go.”
As for the rest of Seattle’s ALDS roster, the club opted for 14 position players and 12 pitchers.
Third baseman Ben Williamson returns after a two-month stint at Triple-A Tacoma in the wake of the Mariners acquiring Eugenio Suárez at the Trade Deadline. Switch-hitting Leo Rivas also made the cut over fellow infielders Miles Mastrobuoni and Cole Young.
The club also kept Harry Ford -- its No. 4 prospect -- on the roster, choosing to ride with three catchers. Ford has appeared in just eight games since his callup, going 1-for-8 at the plate, but Wilson has spoken repeatedly about the lineup flexibility he provides, allowing the club to keep a catcher on the bench while deploying Mitch Garver as a designated hitter.
In the ‘pen, the Mariners opted to carry the second lefty (Caleb Ferguson) along with longer-length righties Emerson Hancock and Luke Jackson.