Logan Evans' elbow surgery deals Mariners' 2026 season a blow before it begins

The Seattle Mariners just got the kind of news every organization dreads before spring training even has a chance to breathe: right-hander Logan Evans had surgery on January 23 to reconstruct a torn UCL in his throwing elbow, with an internal brace, and the projected recovery is about 12 months.

Translation? He’s gone for all of 2026. 

The announcement came directly from Mariners leadership — EVP/GM Justin Hollander and VP of High Performance & Medical Rob Scheidegger — and the procedure was performed by Keith Meister in Texas. 

Mariners suffer a brutal blow as Logan Evans surgery thins their safety net

Evans wasn’t going to be a headline guy this season. Everyone in Seattle knew the rotation was largely set, and he wasn’t walking into camp as “the fifth starter.” But the Mariners absolutely needed him anyway.

Evans was exactly the kind of arm good teams quietly stash in the back pocket — someone who can take the ball when a starter tweaks something, when the schedule gets ugly, or when you just need real innings without having a “bullpen” day. In his 2025 rookie season, he made 16 appearances (15 starts) and gave Seattle 81.1 innings with a 4.32 ERA and 59 strikeouts. Certainly not ace stuff, but it’s credible, usable Major League depth.

Now there’s a crack in the safety net. The Seattle Mariners still have Emerson Hancock — and in a lot of ways, Hancock is what Logan Evans was becoming: the next up, credible-in-a-pinch starter you can tap without holding your breath.

But that’s also the problem. It’s basically Hancock… and then a drop-off. Even with Jhonathan Díaz clearing waivers, the depth chart behind Hancock doesn’t exactly scream “ready-made major league outs,” especially in the kind of emergency starts that can pop up during the season.

This is where the pressure quietly shifts to the front office. If it’s basically Emerson Hancock and vibes behind him — that’s optimism. The Mariners don’t need to panic, but they also don’t get to pretend this is just bad luck and move on. This is the moment you either add another real layer of protection… or you bet your season on everything going perfectly.