Leading 3-2 in the bottom of the seventh inning on Friday night, Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson summoned reliever Matt Brash from the bullpen with the tying run at first and nobody out.

It was a little earlier than usual for Brash, who we're accustomed to seeing in the eighth inning, and it was also against the bottom of the order, which was different than we're used to seeing as well.

But Wilson clearly felt that the game could be hanging in the balance there, so he went to Brash, who has been his most trusted reliever to this point.

And Brash got the job done, getting a line out, a fly out and a pop up to end the threat. And the Mariners eventually won by that 3-2 score, improving to 12-15.

For Brash, it was his fourth hold of the campaign, and it continued his perfect start to the year. He's 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA in 11 games, striking out five batters in 9.1 innings. He's limited the walks and has posted a WHIP of just 0.54.

He's also out to a historic start, as noted by Mariners PR:

Brash is 1-of-3 players in Mariners history to have multiple season opening streaks of at least 10 games without an earned run (also: 19 G in 2025), joining teammates Andrés Muñoz (2023 and 2025) and Gabe Speier (2023 and 2025)

A four-year veteran, Brash was acquired by the Mariners in the 2020 season from the San Diego Padres and made his debut as a starter in 2022. However, he quickly flipped to the bullpen and became one of the best relievers in the league in 2023.

Unfortunately, Brash missed all of 2024 and part of 2025 with Tommy John surgery, but he still made 53 appearances as the M's advanced to the American League Championship Series.

Brash has been so good thus far that some fans have said they want to see him replace Munoz as the team's closer, but ESPN's Buster Olney had an interesting perspective on the latest edition of the 'Refuse to Lose' podcast.

"So, he could. But I think, unless your closer is an abject disaster, I would just leave him there. Right? Because there is value in some respects. Being the closer, you know, it comes with a special title, and you do better in salary arbitration. But managers, oftentimes, their best reliever is not the closer. It's the guy that they want to bring in, you know, the true fireman, who, if there's runners and second and third, and one out, the guy they want to bring into the game in the seventh inning.

And if you feel like Munoz is the ability to finish games, that itself is a skill, and you're hanging on to that. And maybe Brash is the guy who's getting you out of those other situations, because let me tell you, not everybody can close. You know, a great, longtime reliever for the Mariners, for the Yankees was Jeff Nelson. I mean, he was one for years, one of the best setup men in baseball. And he used to say to me about the ninth inning, 'I don't want that.' Some guys don't want it, and some guys do.

And, yes, Munoz has not been great at the beginning of the season, but it's pretty clear he can handle the pressure of having the ninth inning. And by keeping him there, you keep things in line so you can use Matt Brash in key spots and other parts of the game."

The Mariners and Cardinals will play again on Saturday at 11:15 a.m. PT. Bryan Woo will be on the mound.

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