Mariners’ George Kirby Strikes Out Four in First Triple-A Rehab Start
A light at the end of the tunnel is finally materializing for Seattle Mariners right-hander George Kirby, whose recovery from right shoulder inflammation has progressed to live-game reps.
Kirby, who began this season on the injured list after being shut down during spring training, was assigned to Triple-A Tacoma over the weekend, marking the latest milestone in his rehab program. He made his first start with the Rainiers on Sunday, tossing three innings of one-run ball while punching out four.
The 27-year-old cruised through his 42-pitch outing, landing 33 of those for strikes. Seattle’s righty also displayed encouraging fastball velocity, as his four-seamer – which he threw nearly half the time and induced four whiffs on 11 swings – averaged 97.0 mph and topped out at 97.7.
It was a dominating performance from Kirby, whose lone blemish came via a solo home run in the third inning, a 425-foot blast that concluded a nine-pitch at-bat against Athletics’ minor-leaguer Carlos Cortes.
While the Mariners have yet to determine an exact timeline for Kirby’s return, the club remains hopeful he’ll be on track to rejoin the big-league starting rotation before the end of May. Before that happens, though, they want to make sure any inflammation or discomfort he dealt with over the spring doesn’t flare up again.
“It sucks, but I want to be as healthy as possible,” Kirby told reporters, including MLB.com’s Daniel Kramer, after completing a bullpen session at T-Mobile Park last month. “So, I’m being smart and listening to my body. I don’t want to be on the IL again, so I’m trying to do as much as I can.”
Two weeks after halting his spring build-up, Kirby resumed throwing in late March, only for his shoulder soreness to return soon after. That put him on the shelf again as the rest of the team prepared to break camp for the start of the regular season. Meanwhile, the 2023 All-Star stayed behind in Arizona at the organization’s spring training home, where he spent most of April rehabbing his injury.
Since debuting in 2022, Kirby has become a critical piece of Seattle’s rotation, particularly over the last two seasons. During that span, he’s logged at least 190 innings and notched 170 strikeouts each season, posting a combined 3.44 ERA and 3.30 FIP over 64 total starts.
The 6-foot-4 hurler also served as a four-win pitcher per FanGraphs’ wins above replacement in each of those campaigns from 2023-24, ranking fourth among major league starters – behind only Sonny Gray (9.2), Logan Webb (9.3) and Zack Wheeler (11.4).
If replacing Kirby’s production wasn’t challenging enough, the Mariners have also been without another front-line starter, Logan Gilbert, who was placed on the 15-day IL on Apr. 26 with a Grade 1 right elbow flexor strain.
Initially, Gilbert wasn’t supposed to throw at all for two weeks before being re-evaluated by team officials. But he appears ahead of schedule after playing catch on flat ground prior to Sunday’s series finale versus the Texas Rangers.
That likely signals there’s a chance the 28-year-old righty – who owns a 2.37 ERA with 44 strikeouts in six starts this season – may not be sidelined until June or July, as many had previously anticipated. He’ll still need to undergo a series of bullpen and live BP sessions before that can be confirmed, though.
However, if all goes well for Kirby and Gilbert, perhaps both could return to the active roster near the end of May.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @Hall_Thomas_
Photo: ジダネ.