In recent years, the Mariners have almost universally been thought to have the best pitching staff in baseball. While that group has shown some cracks early this season, could the imminent return of Bryce Miller lead to the M's having a dominant starting staff again?

How they fare over one of their most arduous stretches of the season could be very telling.

Miller, who has been out since March 25 with a left oblique strain, is set to make his 2026 debut on Wednesday against the Astros. While Miller mostly struggled in 2025 with a 5.68 ERA over 18 starts, he is just two years removed from a 2024 season where he went 12-8 with a 2.94 ERA and 171 strikeouts.

Miller's return comes at a good time for the Mariners, who were throttled by the White Sox on Saturday when Luis Castillo was throttled for two homers, five hits and four earned runs over four innings of work.  Seattle is in a stretch of 13 games in 13 days, meaning the club will likely need all the pitching it came get throughout this taxing stretch.

Seattle will deploy a six-man rotation as it grinds through this run of games. For the upcoming four-game series against the Astros in Houston, George Kirby (Monday) and Bryan Woo (Tuesday) will start the first two games before Miller slots in on Wednesday. Castillo will look for a strong bounce-back start on Thursday. Emerson Hancock, who has thrived of late and has earned his way into the rotation, will be on the mound on Friday against the Padres.

Going into Sunday's games, here is where the Mariners' pitching staff ranks among all American League teams: fourth in ERA, 13th in hits allowed, tied for seventh in homers surrendered, first in walks and 10th in strikeouts.