Seattle Mariners Rumors: Three Pitchers Demoted In Shocking Roster Moves By Mariners
Seattle Mariners rumors reveal some shocking news from the team. The Mariners have optioned (demoted) three pitchers to Triple-A Tacoma. The move comes at an odd time, as the Mariners had just finished crushing the Oakland Athletics 9-5 down in California. A report from MLB.com late Friday night (July 3) has Roenis Elias, Vidal Nuno, and Tom Wilhelmsen getting a ticket back to Tacoma. No corresponding moves have been given by the team just yet, but it is expected that Hisashi Iwakuma and David Rollins are about to take spots on the 25-man roster.
David Rollins was a selection by the Mariners in the 2015 Rule 5 Draft. He has been serving an 80-game PED suspension from Major League Baseball but is now ready to make his debut with the team. If the Mariners do not add him to the 25-man roster, the team will lose him to either waivers or the Houston Astros. After pitching really well in Spring Training, it had seemed like he would make the bullpen, but the suspension derailed those plans. Now he will enter the bullpen as a left-handed option for manager Lloyd McClendon.
These Seattle Mariners rumors have left a lot of guessing for fans to make as the weekend approaches. Even though Roenis Elias was part of the starting rotation, the team does not need to replace him until Hisashi Iwakuma makes a scheduled start on Monday (July 6). It means the team can promote someone from Tacoma to add to the lineup options for McClendon. This makes it possible that Jesus Montero could get the call after putting up some really good numbers for Tacoma. Montero has been through this before, but the team has to see if he can still provide some value.
Regarding the demotion of Tom Wilhelmsen, he has struggled a bit this season, posting a 4.68 ERA over 22 games. He will go down to Tacoma to work on his command and possibly get called up later in the season. Vidal Nuno is just the odd man out in this situation, as the team doesn’t want to carry too many left-handed relievers. If Rollins doesn’t work out, Nuno could get a quick recall right back to the Mariners.
As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Hisashi Iwakuma could soon be making an audition to be included in a trade before the July 31 deadline. The Mariners still have a lot of ground to make up in the race for the postseason, and failing to do so could mean that the front office starts to unload veterans with short-term deals. Iwakuma is in the final season of his contract, so he might get dealt if the team feels Elias could take his spot seamlessly next year.
The demotions of Roenis Elias, Tom Wilhelmsen, and Vidal Nuno at least prove that the team hasn’t given up on this season. Entering play on Saturday (July 4), the team is five games back of the second wild-card slot. It will be very interesting to see what players surface in the next round of Seattle Mariners rumors as roster replacements. With 84 games to go, the ship hasn’t sailed on the postseason just yet.
[Image Source: Joe Scarnici/Getty Images]
