Mariners' Bryce Miller still walking Opening Day tightrope after injury update

The past few weeks haven't exactly been kind to Bryce Miller. At the start of spring training, the news from Peoria was exciting and it seemed like he was working on adding a new pitch in addition to building back up to a starter's workload. Unfortunately, just as he was seemingly starting to hit his stride, he was temporarily shut down due to an oblique injury.

A particularly optimistic fan might point out that this is a less intimidating issue than the elbow inflammation that limited him to just 90 innings last year, but it's still going to negatively affect his ability to ramp up this spring. In fact, depending on the severity of the injury and how conservative the team wants to be, it may even delay his start of his season.

Miller's rehab of his his oblique injury could cause him to miss his first few scheduled starts of 2026

At the moment, it doesn't seem like the Mariners are too worried about the situation. In a recent injury update by Daniel Kramer of MLB.com, it was reported that Miller looked good in a 15-20 pitch bullpen at 80-90 percent effort. This was more of a status check than anything else, but he maintained velocity in the low-90s with good mechanics. If things continue going well, he'll slowly ramp back up to live action.

It's not quite a make-or-break year, but many are hoping to see the Bryce Miller they saw post a 2.94 ERA over 180.1 innings in 2024. It's difficult to replicate that performance in the majors without a clean bill of health, which is even more of an incentive for he and the organization to play it carefully.

Rushing back into the swing of things could exacerbate the issue before it's fully healed, manifesting in a much longer IL stint later in the year. Missing live reps in spring training isn't ideal, but it's preferable to missing time during the regular season. If he does end up needing more time, Seattle should be able to hold its own without him and has a clear candidate to take over the fifth spot in the rotation in the interim.

For what it's worth, all parties involved seem unbothered by the current state of things. For a young talent like Miller who still has several years of club control remaining, the value is long-term and the Mariners' calm and calculated approach to handling this recent hiccup demonstrates that they continue to manage their pitching staff with the right balance of patience and confidence.