SEATTLE -- No, it’s not quite the way Austin Nola imagined his Major League career finally kicking off. Having grown up in the game of baseball as a shortstop all through college and his first five years of pro ball, Nola converted to catcher two years ago to enhance his chances of finding a niche.

So, go figure. He’s now breaking into the big leagues with the Mariners as a 29-year-old rookie while playing -- what else? -- first base.

After the Mariners traded Jay Bruce and Edwin Encarnacion and saw Ryon Healy hit the injured list with a spinal stenosis diagnosis that has clouded his return, Nola got the call from Triple-A Tacoma last month after greatly improving his offensive game this season while primarily catching for the Rainiers.

But the Mariners have two catchers they’re already developing in Omar Narvaez and Tom Murphy, so Nola has started seven games at first base since his promotion and contributed nicely both with his glove and bat, posting a .323/.364/.548 line in 31 at-bats and cracking his second home run in Sunday’s 6-3 loss to the Angels.

Nola says he never played first base prior to this season, but he’s not about to turn down any opportunity to finally have achieved his dream of joining his younger brother, Phillies pitcher Aaron Nola, in the big leagues.

“You can’t draw it up, I’ll tell you,” Nola said with a smile. “If you’d have told me that [I’d be playing first base in the Majors], I’d have said, 'There’s no shot that’s happening.’ But I’m actually starting to like it.”

Nola’s athleticism and the soft hands of a longtime shortstop have made the conversion easier, but he acknowledged the mental aspect has taken some time.

“I wasn’t a fan of even going from short to second base my last year in 2016 before I converted to catcher,” he said. “That was tough -- just the different angle of the ball. Now when I went to first this year I’m like, ‘Oh man, I have to deal with even more of an angle.’ But I’m starting to get used to it. I’m learning the angles -- lefties with the hook ball, righties are going to tail back. So I’m getting a little more comfortable.”

Nola has continued going to catcher’s meetings every day and got one start behind the plate on July 4. He drew praise from manager Scott Servais for that outing, but his playing time for now will continue coming primarily at first base when Daniel Vogelbach is the designated hitter.

“Yeah, I still continue working at my craft. I love to catch,” Nola said. “That’s something you’re able to do and get a lot of work with pitchers, because they always need to throw and I can join right in. So that’s always good for me. It keeps me in the game. It keeps me learning the different pitchers, different situations and seeing the game from a different angle.”

The breakthrough for Nola this year came at the plate, not behind it. His bat has always been the question mark in his game, and he acknowledges that his offense really suffered in the Marlins’ organization in 2017, when he focused almost exclusively on learning the catching position at the expense of time in the batting cage.

Soon after signing with the Mariners as a Minor League free agent last November, Nola headed to Arizona to begin working with Seattle’s hitting coaches, and he quickly latched on to the new higher launch-angle approach that has worked so well for Mitch Haniger, Braden Bishop and others.

“Just coming to the Mariners, they gave me the numbers and things I needed to do a little better,” he said. “I’ve taken hold of them and continued to work at them and continue to get better at that. Part of the growth of this game is you never have it figured out, never. You’re always learning and growing, and that’s been huge.

“It’s just elevating the ball a little more, getting a little more on plane with the baseball rather than being so steep was the big deal for me.”

The native of Baton Rouge, La., posted a .327/.415/.520 line with seven homers in 55 games in Tacoma and now has proven capable of producing at the Major League level in his initial time with the Mariners.

On Sunday, he started at first base and then shifted to second when Vogelbach pinch-hit and entered the game at first base in the sixth inning. Nola showed his excellent hands and athleticism with a nice sliding stop and throw from that position as well.

Having a utility player capable of being a backup catcher as well as playing any of the infield positions is a rare commodity in the Majors and could certainly help Nola’s future in the game.

But from his perspective, just getting on the field in the big leagues after his eight-season journey through the Minors is the biggest reward.

“It’s pretty awesome,” he said. “I don’t care where I play. I’m just enjoying learning all the different situations. Being part of it is big for me, just getting the experience.”