Mariners dealt another blow as Bryan Woo sent to 15-day IL

Bryan Woo has suffered yet another setback with the Mariners, being sent to the 15-day Injured List as a result of a right hamstring strain.

It was another tough day at the office on Tuesday for the Seattle Mariners, as they suffered a demoralizing 11-3 defeat to the Tampa Bay Rays on the road. They have now lost six of their past seven games, resulting in a 10.0 game lead in the AL West now being down to just 4.5 games.

However, there was even more bad news off the field, as it was confirmed Bryan Woo would be sent to the 15-day Injured List. Following an MRI, it was announced that he had suffered a low level grade right hamstring strain.

The injury occurred one day earlier, during Woo’s start in a 4-3 loss to the Rays. He had looked good during the first three innings — including displaying even more heat in his fastball — but had to leave in the bottom of the fourth with no outs.

Speaking to the media ahead of Tuesday’s game, Woo was asked what happened on the mound. He said:

“I just felt it on that last pitch, (the hamstring) kind of tightened up. I didn’t feel anything before and then I tried to throw a practice pitch. But it just didn’t feel like I could push off the way I wanted to, so that was it.”

Yet another injury for the Mariners righty

This is just the latest in a number of setbacks for the 24-year-old, who started this year on the Injured List due to elbow inflammation. The Mariners have tried to be as careful as possible with him, even scratching one of his scheduled starts two weeks ago after some forearm discomfort.

Woo has injury issues dating back to 2021, which was when the Mariners selected him in the sixth round of the draft. He had to undergo Tommy John surgery and missed the rest of the year.

Given everything that the righty has been through, it’s no surprise he was so emotional and distraught when speaking to the media. A couple of times he had compose himself, entirely understandable given the circumstances.

While this injury is not as serious as some of the others Woo has dealt with, he’s not sure when he will be able to return. He said:

“Just taking it day by day right now. It’s the first time I’ve ever dealt with something like this, so I don’t know much about it. I just know as a general sports knowledge that hamstrings can be kind of irritating and delicate sometimes. So, like I said, I’m just going to listen to the training staff and take it one day at a time.”

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Woo appeared headed in the right direction

The irony of the current setback, is that Woo said this was the best he’d felt all season prior to the hamstring strain. In addition, it’s very rare that a player will actually suffer a hamstring injury while pitching.

Obviously the Mariners still have high hopes for the Oakland native, who made his Major League debut last season and settled in almost right away. He has been even better so far this season when available, with a 1.77 ERA, 2.71 FIP and stellar 0.689 WHIP in 40.2 combined innings spread over eight starts.

Aside from actually getting Woo back on the mound, the Mariners are going to have to start thinking (more) about how to use him long-term. As much as the preference is for him to be a regular starter, if he continues to have injury issues then he might be better-utilized as a reliever.

Are you confident Woo will eventually become a main and consistent part of the Mariners rotation? Or do you see him having to be moved to the bullpen due to his durability issues? Let us know in the comments section below.