A look at Logan Gilbert and some other takes, as the Mariners lose 3-0 to the Dodgers and fall to 2-2 in Cactus League action.
The Seattle Mariners travelled to Glendale to take on the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday afternoon, in a game which plenty of fans in the Pacific Northwest will be hoping is a preview of some late October/early November action. And while the stakes were nowhere near as high, the Dodgers maintained their unbeaten start to the Cactus League schedule by winning 3-0 and improving to 3-0, while the M’s fell to 2-2.
Arguably the main headline of the day from a Mariners perspective involved Logan Gilbert, who made his spring training debut and put in a solid effort. Sure he allowed a hit and two walks in 2.0 innings, but the majority of players needs to shake off some rust when seeing their first game action of the year.
What mattered most was that Gilbert looked composed, as he also threw two strikeouts and did not allow any runs. His fastball peaked at 97 mph, with him also being able to utilize his other three pitches despite the short outing.
Dan Wilson happy with Logan Gilbert on the day
After the game, Mariners manager Dan Wilson spoke to the media about Gilbert’s outing and how encouraged he was by what he saw. Wilson said:
“Good to see Logan back out there. I thought (it was) a couple innings of good work for him. Threw the ball well, did exactly what he was looking to do today. Pound the zone, good fastball, the below was there through his secondary (pitches). So good stuff for him today.”
Last season was a tough one for Gilbert, as he had to deal with a right elbow flexor strain which ultimately cost him around seven/eight starts. As a result he went from leading the majors with 208.2 innings in 2024, down to 131.0 innings in 2025.
However, it’s not as if the 2024 All-Star was a disaster, as he still produced a 2.1 bWAR, 3.44 ERA, 110 ERA+, 3.35 FIP and 1.031 WHIP. It’s just that the bar has been raised so much more now for the righty, which isn’t a bad thing in the grand scheme of things.
Gilbert spoke about his first outing of spring training postgame. As per Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times, he said:
“It’s always interesting with first start because it takes me a little bit to switch (the mindset) to having counts with walks and prioritizing counts over just throwing bullpens, where you’re trying to throw a perfect pitch. But all things considered, it actually felt like it was coming out pretty good. I was pretty synced up with my lower half and it’s pretty good.”
A poor outing by Jose A. Ferrer but much ado about nothing
Another pitcher making his first appearance of spring training and seeing his first game action in a Mariners jersey full stop, was offseason trade acquisition Jose A. Ferrer. Expected to be a key component in the bullpen this coming season, things couldn’t have started much worse for the southpaw.
Ferrer came into a scoreless game at the top of the fifth inning, and proceeded to allow three hits, a walk and two earned runs. When it was all said and done he only managed one out — via a strikeout — before he was removed from the game.
Not that Wilson was too concerned (nor should he be), when discussing the 25-year-old’s outing postgame with the media. Wilson said:
“I thought he had good stuff. It looked like it was coming out of his hand well. But they were just able to get some pitches up in the zone a little bit. And they weren’t trying to do too much, just trying to hit him the other way and able to tack on a couple of runs there. But I love the fact that he was pounding the zone, and that’s what he does.”
Ferrer is coming off a season with the Washington Nationals when he set career-highs of 72 appearances and 76.1 combined innings, and he should help a M’s bullpen which struggled with injuries and quality depth. As Wilson mentioned he has good stuff, with Baseball Savant ranking him in the 99th percentile in GB%, 95th percentile in BB% and 94th percentile in Fastball Velo.
Mariners bats go cold
One day after blitzing the Reds for 17 hits and 14 runs, the Mariners could only muster four hits with no scoring, including Rob Refsnyder going 0-for-2 in his spring training debut. Although in fairness, as per Brady Farkas of Roundtable Sports, he attended an event over the weekend to honor a recently-passed former teammate so it would be no surprise if he was distracted in any way.
Other notes
- Jonny Farmelo went 1-for-2 and recorded his second stolen base of spring training.
- Austin St. Laurent recorded Seattle’s lone extra-base hit, a double in the eighth inning.
- Mariners pitching combined for eight punchouts of Dodgers hitters and held them to 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
- Next up the Mariners return to Peoria on Tuesday afternoon to face the Chicago White Sox, with George Kirby making his first start of spring training.
Quote of the day
Colt Emerson intentionally dropped a ball to try and get a double play and even though the umpires overruled it, the young prospect was praised for being aware enough to even attempt it. Wilson said:
“That’s the kind of player we know he is. Just thinking along with the game and kind of a lighter moment. But at the same time, it shows you that he knows what’s expected. He’s in the game mentally and just a heads-up play on his part.”
Photos court​‌esy of Tim Rogers Photography
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