Mariners send 3 players to IL as they unveil opening day roster

The Mariners have one of their most complete rosters ever, but must make do without J.P. Crawford and Bryce Miller to begin the 2026 season.

Wednesday was a pivotal day for the Seattle Mariners, as they announced their opening day 26-man roster for the 2026 season. It represents one of the most complete rosters in franchise history, and the scary thing for opposing teams is that it will become even better in the coming weeks.

This time around the Mariners are going to get a full season of Josh Naylor, who proved to be a galvanizing force for the team after he arrived from Arizona in late July. They have brought Brendan Donovan on board, who’s the prototype of what you’re looking for when you want a hard-working teammate with leadership skills.

There’s an AL MVP runner up in Cal Raleigh, who is so good that a 40-homer campaign will be considered a regression. And there’s Julio Rodríguez, who seems better-positioned than ever to work his magic over an entire season, which in turn would propel him into that same category as what Raleigh was last year, as a legitimate AL MVP contender.

The rotation is so talented that they are capable of being the best in all of baseball, as they were in 2024, while the bullpen should be even better following the addition of Jose A. Ferrer. Overall, this is the season for Mariners fans to truly believe they have a team capable of doing what has never been achieved before in Seattle – make the World Series.

Mariners start year without J.P. Crawford and Bryce Miller

As mentioned, the Mariners should be even better in the coming weeks, due to being without some key personnel to begin the 2026 season. As confirmed on Wednesday, J.P. Crawford (right shoulder inflammation), Bryce Miller (left side oblique inflammation) and Miles Mastrobuoni (right calf strain) have all been assigned to the injured list.

NB: – Logan Evans is additionally on the 60-day injured list and is out for the year.

Crawford and Mastrobuoni have both been placed on the 10-day injured list while Miller has gone on the 15-day injured list, with all three moves being retroactive to Mar. 22. The trio have remained in Peoria, Arizona, with the expectation that they will all be ready to return earlier than later in April.

Miller has the most still to do as per being placed on the 15-day injured list, but Mariners manager Dan Wilson is encouraged. Speaking to the media during Wednesday’s workout day at T-Mobile Park, Wilson said:

“He continues to throw and the next step is getting some hitters in the box, which ramps things up a little bit more. Once he passes that hurdle then it’s getting a chance to get in some games; whether that’s down there or up here remains to be seen. But he’s progressing in a way that we were hopeful for, he’s in a good spot and it shouldn’t take him too long.”

While Miller is out Emerson Hancock will take his place in the rotation, with the 2020 sixth overall draft pick coming off quite the spring, including 21 strikeouts and a solitary walk in 15.0 innings of action. If things go poorly for Hancock though then the next man up will be offseason acquisition Cooper Criswell, who himself looked strong in Cactus League action.

Another thing to note is that, as reported last week, Mitch Garver was officially named as the backup catcher to Raleigh on the opening day roster. As predicted by many, after clearing waivers Andrew Knizner has now elected for free agency rather than accepting an outright to Triple-A Tacoma.

Other takeaways

The biggest question mark in the bullpen is Casey Legumina, with some wondering how long he will stick around and with the added pressure of being out of minor league options. If you’re looking for some optimism with Legumina, there were similar negative thoughts surrounding Gabe Speier heading into last season, and we all saw how that played out.

We entirely appreciate that Ferrer should strengthen the bullpen, while acknowledging Garver’s familiarity with the pitching staff and particular rapport with George Kirby is a positive. However, we’re always going to wonder ‘what if?’ when it comes to trading away Harry Ford.

Keep an eye on the whole situation with Crawford at shortstop, whether it be how he plays when he returns or if he has any more shoulder issues (or injury problems in general). He’s in the last year of his current contract and the expectation is that Colt Emerson will be called up for his Major league debut sooner than later this season.

M’s full 26-man opening day roster

Starting rotation

• Logan Gilbert
• George Kirby
• Bryan Woo
• Luis Castillo
• Emerson Hancock

Bullpen

• Andrés Muñoz
• Matt Brash
• Eduard Bazardo
• Carlos Vargas
• Cooper Criswell
• Casey Legumina
• Gabe Speier (LHP)
• José A. Ferrer (LHP)

Catchers

• Cal Raleigh
• Mitch Garver

Infield

• Josh Naylor
• Cole Young
• Leo Rivas
• Ryan Bliss

Infield/Outfield

• Brendan Donovan
• Luke Raley
• Rob Refsnyder

Outfield

• Julio Rodríguez
• Randy Arozarena
• Victor Robles
• Dom Canzone

Mariners Major League coaching staff

Manager: Dan Wilson

Coaches: Bench Coach: Manny Acta, ML Coach/Director of Pitching Strategy: Trent Blank, Third Base Coach: Carlos Cardoza, ML Pitching Strategist & Assistant Pitching Coach: Danny Farquhar, Infield Coach: Perry Hill, Assistant Hitting Coach: Bobby Magallanes, Senior Director, Hitting Strategy: Edgar Martinez, ML Field Coordinator: Jake McKinley, Bullpen Coach: Austin Nola, Hitting Coach: Kevin Seitzer, Pitching Coach: Pete Woodworth, First Base Coach: Eric Young Jr.; Bullpen Catcher: Fleming Báez, Bullpen Catcher: Justin Novak.

Photos by Mazvita Maraire

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