40 Days Until Mariners Opening Day: Previewing #40 Wyatt Mills

Now with 40 days left until Seattle Mariners Opening Day, let’s learn more about #40, Wyatt Mills.

Mills is actually a Washington native and grew up in Spokane. He attended Gonzaga Prep and went to Gonzaga University. So you could say he is extremely local and must like Washington.

Wyatt was drafted in the third round by the Mariners in 2017, so you’d expect him to have some solid college numbers, and he did exactly that. At Gonzaga, he posted a 2.47 ERA and threw 109.1 innings for the Bulldogs across four years. He also saved 21 games struck out 109 batters.

Wyatt Mills in the Mariners organization

After being selected in the 2017 draft, the 6’4″ right-hander went to work immediately. He spent his first professional season in Clinton and Everett and absolutely dominated. That year, he put together a combined 1.77 ERA and saved six games.

And then in 2018, he quickly moved up and pitched in High-A and Double-A. He pitched well in Modesto and posted a 1.91 ERA, but the leap to Double-A was rough. He had a 10.97 ERA at Arkansas through 10.2 innings.

He got another shot at Double-A in 2019 and was much better since he had more opportunities. He threw 52.2 innings and posted a 4.27 ERA which is a vast improvement. Mills probably would have spent most of 2020 in Triple-A had the season not been canceled.

This means he should start in Tacoma in 2021 and may get a late-season call-up if he can adjust to Triple-A batters quickly. He has been able to adjust which is a great sign of maturity from the Gonzaga product.

Most recently, Wyatt pitched in the Arizona instructional league and absolutely dominated. So, things are looking up.

What’s Wyatt Mills’ future Mariners outlook?

MLB.com has not updated its prospect rankings for each team yet, but for the 2020 rankings, Wyatt Mills was the 23rd ranked prospect in the organization. Of course, that’s nothing too special but I think Mills gets a bit overlooked because he is a relief pitcher.

Based on the videos I have seen, and the numbers he has, Mills could be a crucial asset in high leverage situation for the Mariners. #40 isn’t just an ordinary right-hander that delivers over the top, he uses a funky deliver to throw batters off.

Although his fastball sits in the low-90s, it has tons of movement and uses a slider to go with it. He doesn’t throw from the same slot as Steve Cishek, but Mills has some similarities.

The 26-year-old won’t draw the attention of fans like Jarred Kelenic and Julio Rodriguez, but Wyatt should be an extremely impactful pitcher for many years to come. I am excited to see him pitch soon.