Bryce Miller goes on IL, elbow 'structurally looks really good'

SEATTLE -- An already battered Mariners rotation took another hit on Wednesday, when Bryce Miller was placed on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation, though the club is optimistic that his stay on the shelf will be minimal after an MRI revealed no structural damage.

Miller, who has labored through the issue amid what’s been an inconsistent 2025, joined All-Stars Logan Gilbert and George Kirby on the IL. This is Miller’s first such stint of his career -- and the first time he’s had an arm issue.

“I've mentioned it a few times, but it’s just been kind of lingering and kind of started really the back half of last year, and kind of led through the offseason,” Miller said. “Spring [Training] felt good, but really, since the first start of the year, it hasn't felt like it should. I just have a little bit of inflammation in the joint, and I'm just going to get it out, get it taken care of and hopefully feel good the rest of the year.”

Miller, who has a 5.22 ERA in eight starts, received a cortisone shot on Tuesday, one day after undergoing the MRI.

“They said everything structurally looks really good,” Miller said, “so I’ve just got to take care of the inflammation and go from there.”

Miller experienced diminished velocity later in starts (he was down to 90.7 mph on his final fastball on Sunday, compared to his 95 mph season average in 2024) and command issues (nearly doubling his walk rate from last year, 6.4% to 12.1%) while dealing with the issue -- which he said first surfaced over the final two months last year.

That said, medication and treatment allowed him to grind through it, as he finished on arguably the highest note of any arm within Seattle’s rotation, capped with a 2.94 ERA over a career-high 180 1/3 innings, including a 1.94 ERA over his final 15 starts.

“I didn't think anything major was wrong,” Miller said. “It just was something, like I said, that's been lingering and hasn't been able to fix itself with the treatment we've been doing.”

The first-place Mariners have mostly been able to withstand the absences of Gilbert (right elbow flexor strain) and Kirby (right shoulder inflammation), thanks to an offensive breakout over the past five weeks -- their four-game losing streak before Tuesday’s extra-innings win notwithstanding.

But after Wednesday’s finale vs. the Yankees, they’ll embark on a three-city, 10-game road trip with no off-days, beginning on Friday vs. a Padres team that’s on a roll. The Mariners have not yet revealed their pitching plans for the weekend, though they could conceivably reslot after Thursday’s off-day.

They’d likely prefer red-hot Bryan Woo to pitch on Sunday in San Diego -- even on a five-day routine despite their efforts to keep him on a sixth day as much as possible -- instead of against a White Sox club that’s 13-29 for a three-game series that follows on Monday.

“Lots to consider,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “There are some spots in there. We've had the luxury of a lot of off-days here for a stretch, and that luxury is gone once we start on the road trip here. So those are all the things we're trying to weigh and consider.”

That said, they should return Kirby on the road trip, potentially as soon as next Thursday in Houston. Kirby is slated to make his third and likely final rehab start for Triple-A Tacoma on Friday in Albuquerque. Adding him then could conceivably allow them to push everyone else back one day once he’s reinserted.

“We want to make sure we get everybody slated,” Wilson said, “and then guys start coming back, too, so we’re trying to figure all that out.”

Gilbert, who threw his first bullpen session on Tuesday since suffering his injury on April 25, could potentially return this month, too. Gilbert, Miller and Kirby accounted for 97 starts last season (nearly 60% of Seattle’s schedule), over which they carried a combined 3.24 ERA. This is the first time for all three that they’ve been on the IL.

“Give it a couple weeks, and we should be all back, and hopefully, firing on all cylinders ready to go,” Miller said. “I think that's going to be a big boost for all of us individually, but us as a team as well.”