Mariners prospect Logan Gilbert is pitching in Seattle this summer – but not in the way he expected
Logan Gilbert was expecting to pitch at T-Mobile Park by this point in the summer — but not under these circumstances.
Back in March, before the COVID-19 pandemic shut down spring training in Arizona, he looked sharp through two Cactus League starts, tossing four scoreless innings, allowing a single hit and striking out four.
Gilbert, a former first-round pick, was plenty confident he could reach the big leagues by July. So were the Seattle Mariners.
Four months later, the 23-year-old is spending his afternoons in a major league ballpark as one of several up-and-coming prospects in Seattle’s 60-man player pool, and he will face major league hitters this season, but likely only teammates in intrasquad games during summer camp.
Without those spring months to continue his development in the minors, Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto said in June it is unlikely young players like Gilbert — who is Seattle’s top pitching prospect — will make it to the majors during this shortened 60-game season.
Before his Sunday afternoon workout, during a video conference call with local reporters, Gilbert said he’s trying not to dwell on the opportunity lost when baseball was shut down.
“It’s easier to say than actually do, obviously,” he said. “I could let myself keep thinking about it, but it’s really just wasted energy when it comes down to it.
“It wouldn’t do anything for me to wish that none of this would have happened. This is the situation that I’m in, so the only thing that I can do is try to make the most of it.”
When the Mariners shut down their Peoria facility, Gilbert continued his work back at his home in Orlando, trying to maintain the progress he made in big league camp.
“I was training at my house a lot,” he said. “I have a mound in my backyard, and some weights and all of that stuff, so I was able to keep up with that for the most part. Then eventually when Florida got opened up again, I trained back at the facility I go to around my house.”
It was tough, at times during the shut down, to find a throwing partner, he said. When he was in Florida, he spent a lot of time throwing at a target, or sometimes with his dad. When his training facility reopened, he threw there, and eventually worked with some of the catchers at Stetson, the small university in Florida the Mariners drafted him from at No. 14 overall in 2018.
The toughest part about those months back at home, he said, was trying to figure out how much to train without a solid date for when players would return to camp. But, he kept up his spring training intensity as much as possible during those sessions, and has felt good through the first few days of workouts in Seattle.
“It’s been great, just being in the ballpark, getting used to all of that stuff, it’s really cool being out there with the guys,” he said.
Gilbert has already thrown a bullpen session in T-Mobile Park, and has also been with the groups that have trekked across the street to CenturyLink Field, which the Mariners are borrowing during game, to get in throwing there.
Throwing in the NFL facility is strange, he said, but he’s enjoyed the chance to work out there — even if the goal posts have been removed.
“They actually took them down,” he said. “That was the first thing I thought of was could you actually get (the ball) from goal post to goal post?
“But, they took it down so we wouldn’t be too tempted, probably,” he joked.
Gilbert said, even if he doesn’t pitch in the big leagues this season, he believes his goals for the year are still achievable, as long as he’s pitching competitive innings against live batters in intrasquad games.
But, as far as his expectations for himself, it’s a tough question to answer given how the season has played out.
“Things kind of got flipped around big time,” he said. “I was hoping to be up in the big leagues hopefully by this time, but things got changed around. I think, as long as we can get the most out of it development-wise, and still get a lot of innings in under my belt, I feel like that’s the best thing.
“I wasn’t really sure if this season would happen or not, or if I would be able to play in competitive games, so just getting the innings in and continuing to develop, I think that’s the main part.”
THE KING OPTS OUT
Former Mariners ace Felix Hernandez became the latest prominent player to opt out of the 2020 season Sunday evening.
The decision was announced via a tweet from Hernandez’s agent, Wilfredo Polidor, and cited concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic as the reason Hernandez decided not to pitch this year.
Hernandez, 34, signed a one-year minor league deal with Atlanta in January, was in big league camp with the Braves this spring before baseball shut down, and was expected to battle for a rotation spot.
He worked out Friday and Saturday with the Braves at Truist Park, and posted a photo of himself in a mask on Instagram captioned, “Let’s do this,” when camps opened Friday.
The decision to opt out came not long after a handful of Braves players tested positive for the virus.
Hernandez went 1-1 with a 1.98 in spring training, allowing three runs on 13 hits with 14 strikeouts and five walks across 13 2/3 innings.
Braves manager Brian Snitker told reporters in Atlanta on Sunday that Hernandez “didn’t do anything to warrant not making our club in the spring.” Hernandez would have made $1 million if added to the 40-man roster this season.
Mariners manager Scott Servais acknowledged Hernandez’s decision during a video conference call with reporters Sunday morning, but said no Mariners players have indicated they will choose a similar path at this point.
“Certainly understand it,” Servais said. “Everybody’s situation is different. They have people at home and they’re looking at it differently. I think as this thing moves along you may see more of it, but I haven’t had any indication from any of our guys that that could be an issue.
“Things can change. Certainly we have to be adjustable and ready for it to happen if it does happen. But, on our end, on the field, in the clubhouse with our guys, I haven’t heard any of that.”
Another former Mariners starter, Mike Leake, was the first known major league player to opt out, when he announced he would skip the season through his agent on June 29. The 32-year-old would have made $16 million for a full season and was also in contention for a rotation spot.
SHORT HOPS
The Mariners will resume live batting practice sessions Monday, and a “handful of guys” will pitch, Servais said. Most will throw 20-25 pitches, though some, like starters Marco Gonzales and Yusei Kikuchi, could go longer. … Monday’s morning workout session will be streamed live on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Twitch, will the afternoon session will be streamed live on YouTube and Twitch. … The Mariners have received COVID-19 results for most players whose tests were still pending last week. “As I said early on, we did have a small number of guys test positive and they’re obviously not out here yet,” Servais said.
