The right-hander is back from the injured list, but there's a corresponding move that needed to happen in order to make it a reality.
On Wednesday, the Seattle Mariners will get Bryce Miller back in the starting rotation as he'll make his first start of the 2026 campaign.
The M's (21-22) are looking to take their third straight game from the division rival Houston Astros. The Mariners are already 6-0 against Houston on the season.
Miller has been sidelined since early in spring training because of a left oblique issue. He made just one Cactus League start and has made four rehab appearances between High-A Everett and Triple-A Tacoma, pitching to a 1.98 ERA.
The Mariners have said they are going to utilize a six-man rotation for one time through the rotation, and then they will piggyback Miller and Luis Castillo at least one time through.
That means that the Mariners will be operating with a thinner seven-man bullpen for a period of time. In order to bring Miller back, the Mariners designated veteran left-hander Jose Suarez for assignment.
How about the bullpen on Wednesday?
The bullpen is thin. Suarez is gone, which shrinks the 'pen to seven, and Alex Hoppe is likely unavailable after throwing two innings on Tuesday. The Mariners can't necessarily count on Miller to give them length in his first start back, so it might be all hands on deck with the remaining arms.
The Suarez angle
The Mariners didn't have to DFA Suarez, who is an 8-year veteran of the Los Angeles Angels, Atlanta Braves and Mariners. They could have kept him while sending any of Josh Simpson, Alex Hoppe or Domingo Gonzalez down to Triple-A. Instead, they elected to keep all three.
And for now, Simpson is the only lefty in the bullpen.
Suarez threw two innings for the Mariners, giving up one run and two walks while striking out three.
What does that all mean?
It's hard to imagine that the Mariners would leave themselves to just one lefty in the bullpen. Is there a chance that there is a second roster move coming on Wednesday, one that reinstates Jose A. Ferrer from the paternity list and puts him as the second lefty?
Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh (29) and pitcher Bryce Miller (50) walk to the dugout before the game against the Cleveland Guardians at Peoria Sports Complex. Rick Scuteri-Imagn ImagesAlso of note
First pitch between the Mariners and Astros is at 5:10 p.m. PT. Lance McCullers is on the mound for Houston.
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