Mariners prospect Logan Gilbert throws 2 scoreless innings in first Cactus League start

Logan Gilbert’s second Cactus League appearance turned out much better than his first.

Last March, ahead of his first professional season, the towering right-hander came on in relief in a spring training game against the Indians.

He didn’t even last one inning.

Seven batters, four hits, five runs and a two-run homer after he entered the game in the fifth inning, Gilbert walked back to the dugout after notching just two outs.

“I was so ready to get back out there after a year of just waiting for my turn,” Gilbert, a year older, said Thursday afternoon at Peoria Stadium. “I think it was big playing a full pro season under my belt, playing in stadiums with crowds — all of that stuff.”

The season of experience made his second Cactus League appearance, a start against the Giants, just another game.

This time around, the Seattle Mariners top pitching prospect delivered a pair of scoreless frames, allowing one hit and striking out San Francisco first baseman Austin Slater on 29 pitches.

“I felt good out there,” he said. “It was way better results than last time, too. It was just nice to be out there facing batters again.”

The 22-year-old worked in all four of his pitches — his fastball, which ranged between 91-95 mph, curveball, slider and a changeup he’s been mixing in more during the last year — and despite a few erratic off-speed offerings, he very little trouble sitting down Giants hitters.

Second baseman Shed Long Jr. made a play on the only hit Gilbert allowed — a single into shallow right — but threw wide of the bag for what could have been an out in the second.

“My stuff felt pretty good,” Gilbert said. “It’s not as sharp as I want it right now, but it’s spring training. I was throwing strikes, I had all of my pitches somewhat, so I felt good about it.”

Gilbert was ready to get back in front of big league hitters after carving up the minors in 2019. In 26 starts at three levels in the minors for the Mariners last season — he opened with Low-A West Virginia, jumped to High-A Modesto in May, and again to Double-A Arkansas by June — Gilbert posted a combined 10-5 record and 2.13 ERA that ranked third in the minors among qualified pitchers.

He fanned 165 batters behind his imposing, 6-foot-6, 225-pound frame, and allowed an opponent batting average of just .198 across 135 innings.

He’s performed at every turn, giving the Mariners exactly the pitcher they expected when they drafted him in the first round in 2018.

“You can see how he’s come along,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said. “A lot of confidence. … He’s got what you’re looking for in a young starting pitcher.”

Naturally Gilbert was getting restless waiting to return to the mound in Peoria, especially after his original scheduled start was pushed back.

“Finally,” he said. “I mean, it’s towards the end of February here. I was thinking I was going to get in, but the rainout kind of messed with it. So, I had to wait a few more days, but I knew in good time it would come up.”

The plan was to have Gilbert pitch one inning in that first start over the weekend, but with the extra days of preparation, he threw an additional bullpen session, and his arm felt strong enough to stretch to two innings Thursday.

It was worth the wait to be on his schedule, his routine, and feel much more comfortable on that mound than he did a year ago.

“There are some good hitters over there, like any team we’re going to face, and I feel like I have the stuff to compete with them,” Gilbert said. “Really confident in myself and feel like I can go toe-to-toe with anybody. That’s how I feel in my mind.”

Gilbert looked smooth with his fastball, throwing it consistently for strikes, and his slider and curve worked well in spots, including when he fooled Slater with a low slider for his one strikeout. He’d like to work in his changeup more as the season progresses.

“I’d say it’s my fourth pitch,” Gilbert said. “I feel good with it. I made huge strides last year, and the other three pitches I get swings and misses on. That’s kind of what they do, so it’s nice to have that fourth pitch just for that soft contact, lefties, stuff like that. It has it’s own job in the arsenal that I use it for.

“I like working it in. That was a big part of the second half of last year, trying to get it up and get 10-15 a game, to get that feel for it and know that I have it for strikes whenever I want. That’s a big part of it.”

Gilbert will start more games for the Mariners this spring before opening the season back in the minors, likely with Arkansas again, the second week of April.

“It’s weird — it’s another one of those waiting things,” he said. “It’s just being patient. If anything I get more practice, get pitches under my belt and should be feeling really sharp for the minor league season with that extra (time).”

He will wait a little longer before his promotion to Seattle, too, where he’s projected to end up sometime in 2020. Gilbert was one of three prospects who spent the last week of the season in the clubhouse with the Mariners in 2019 to get exposure to the big league experience, and took plenty out of it.

“It was really cool,” he said. “It was really fun just being up there, but also learning from some of the guys and seeing the last week of a long season, and these guys — Marco (Gonzales), Yusei (Kikuchi) — are still going through their routines, being professionals, doing what they do and really sticking to the script.

“It was pretty inspiring to see what they did. … I thought I was really detailed all the way through my career, and I get up there and (the Mariners have) all of these in-depth reports and everything they have for them. They check every box before a start.”

This story was originally published February 27, 2020 at 1:33 PM.

Lauren Smith

The News Tribune

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Lauren Smith is a sports reporter at The News Tribune. She has covered high school sports for TNT and The Olympian, as well as the Seattle Mariners and Washington Huskies. She is a graduate of UW and Emerald Ridge High School.