DETROIT -- The Mariners will need to juggle their rotation plans this coming week due to Friday's rainout, with a spot starter expected to be called up for Wednesday's game against the Rangers at Safeco Field.
Marco Gonzales initially was slated for that game, but Gonzales' start was delayed from Friday to Saturday's opening game of a doubleheader against the Tigers. That would leave him on just three days' rest to pitch Wednesday, so he'll likely now be pushed back to Thursday.
Felix Hernandez, who pitched the second game of Saturday's doubleheader, would start Friday in that scenario and James Paxton would be pushed back a day as well to Saturday, though manager Scott Servais said no final decisions had been made.
What is certain is that the Mariners need someone to take the Wednesday start since Gonzales' schedule was thrown off by the weather. Servais said the club won't go with a "bullpen" day, but will likely look to Triple-A Tacoma for a fill-in.
"We're really not built that way right now to just absorb nine innings out of the bullpen," he said. "So we'll look at different options. No decision has been made where we'll go there."
Ariel Miranda is the most likely answer. The left-hander pitched well in a spot start earlier in the season and was a regular rotation member last year. He's scheduled to pitch Sunday in Sacramento, so the decision will be made clear if he's scratched from that start.
Left-hander Roenis Elias would be another option, but he pitched 5 2/3 innings on Saturday for Tacoma and thus would only be on three days of rest by Wednesday.
Upon further review …
Servais returned from his daughter Jackie's graduation from the Master's program at Ole Miss over the weekend and was back in the managerial seat Sunday. The third-year skipper said he was glad he attended the ceremony, but acknowledged the difficulty in being away from Saturday's doubleheader and just catching bits and pieces on TV.
The Mariners had a communication snafu on a key play in the first game, a 4-3 loss, when they didn't challenge a play at the plate when catcher Mike Zunino appeared to have tagged JaCoby Jones for what would have been the final out of the sixth and prevented a crucial three-run inning.

"I talked to our guys a little yesterday and this morning," Servais said. "The biggest thing is it was a miscommunication. Guys were in different spots [due to my absence]. I feel bad for that. It was a close play, a pivotal play in the game. But it really was a miscommunication. It wasn't anybody saying 'yes' or 'no,' the wires just got crossed on the message coming from the video room into the dugout."
Servais said the staff discussed ways to eliminate any such issues in the future.
"That's one thing we talked about this morning, just to make sure we're clear in our process and how we're going about doing things," he said. "Things happen. Players strike out with the bases loaded or make errors, I make wrong decisions some nights. It's part of it. We're all in this thing together. We'll move forward. I'm really glad we bounced back in the second game. I thought we did an outstanding job and our offense really picked us up."