CINCINNATI -- The Mariners’ bullpen turnover continued on Wednesday when the club optioned struggling reliever Gregory Santos to Triple-A Tacoma, one day after he was on the mound for a bases-loaded walk during the eighth inning of an 8-4 loss to the Reds at Great American Ball Park.
In a corresponding move, right-hander Will Klein was recalled from Tacoma.
Santos has a 5.14 ERA (73 ERA+, where MLB average is 100) with one loss and one blown save over eight outings, along with eight walks and zero strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings, making him worth minus-0.2 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs.
That line represents a stark contrast to what the Mariners were anticipating after the flamethrowing righty entered Spring Training healthy after an injury-plagued first season in Seattle, when he made just eight appearances following a high-profile trade with the White Sox leading into the previous spring.
Velocity hasn’t been an issue -- he’s averaged 97.4 mph between his four-seam fastball and sinker -- but he’s had little to no command with the heaters, as his 22.2% walk rate is fifth highest among 287 pitchers who’ve thrown at least seven innings.
“We talk a lot here, and it's our philosophy in dominating the zone and getting ahead and just finding some consistency there for him,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “He's got the great stuff, and being able to continually -- consistently -- find the zone with it is going to be key for him.”
And beyond having zero strikeouts, Santos has only generated six whiffs among the 137 total pitches he’s thrown, which despite his pedigree as being a heavy ground-ball pitcher, became problematic -- especially in late-innings jams such as Tuesday’s, when he surrendered a one-out single then two walks to load the bases and another free pass that manufactured a run.
At that point, the series opener was still within reach, at least within the context of Great American Ball Park’s hitter-friendly environment and the top of the Mariners’ lineup due up the following inning facing potentially only a two-run deficit.
“He just wasn't able to get ahead and command the zone, command the count and take control of the at-bat,” Wilson said postgame.
For all these reasons, Santos was likely going to be the odd man out when Seattle needed a fifth starter this weekend in Toronto, or when Matt Brash returned from a rehab assignment with Tacoma. The 25-year-old had one Minor League option remaining.
“He is going to be a big piece for us,” Wilson said, alluding to the organization’s hopes that he can get back on track.
Klein, who was already on the 40-man roster, was acquired from the A’s for international slot money in January and he made five appearances in Spring Training. At Tacoma, Klein surrendered nine runs in 6 1/3 innings (12.79 ERA) with 13 strikeouts and seven walks.