Mariners now have 2 good excuses to give Ryan Sloan the Kade Anderson treatment

This past weekend was a successful one for the Mariners, as they managed to get a series win versus a very good Cubs team and in the process close the gap at the top of the AL West to 3.0 games. However, no one's under any illusion the M's still have a mountain to climb, in part due to a starting rotation which ranks 20th in the majors this month with a 4.43 ERA. It's time to give Ryan Sloan his shot and they may never have a better excuse this season to do so.

Never has there been a greater need for the Mariners to show a sense of urgency, with just 31 games remaining to avoid this becoming arguably the most disappointing season in franchise history. This includes embracing the concept of turning the future into the present. They've already started down this road by giving Kade Anderson his Major League debut, but now need to give Sloan similar treatment.

The top pitching prospect duo have been almost joined at the hip this season, both plying their trade in Double-A Arkansas. Even before this season there was plenty of hype, with Mariners general manager Justin Hollander refusing to rule out giving them both their Major League debuts in 2026. Anderson has now got his chance and Sloan deserves to follow suit, helped by what's been going on of late with both Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo.

Mariners can't afford to keep waiting on Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo, especially with their recent injury history

The situation with Miller has just gotten plain ugly now, with a 7.19 ERA in his past eight outings, all of which have ended up as losses for the Mariners. This includes a 7.92 ERA in his six most recent starts, to coincide with a lat issue which he has been dealing with, that he finally admitted to on Sunday following his rough appearance in a 19-2 loss to the Cubs. It's past the point now where the M's need to save him from himself, whether this means putting him on the Injured List or, at the very least, moving him to the bullpen.

As for Woo, he's been dealing with a right shoulder issue since his most recent start in Houston on Aug. 16. He actually mentioned soreness ahead of his outing versus the Astros, and the M's ended up taking him out after 75 pitches over 6.0 innings. He did have an encouraging bullpen session on Sunday, but the reality is no decision has yet been made on when he will next start.

The concerns for both are real, when you consider Miller has had injury issues since towards the end of 2024. Meanwhile, we all remember how Woo's tremendous 2025 campaign came undone right near the end of the regular season due to a pectoral issue, and this definitely impacted the Mariners come playoff time. Just having one of them dealing with more injury issues should have the door slightly ajar for Sloan to get his chance, but both of them struggling should have him slamming it wide open.

Ryan Sloan continues to take his game to greater heights and deserves a shot to save the Mariners' rotation

It's not even as if this is just about the Mariners needing Sloan to fill in for a couple of ailing starters. Sure, he isn't as polished as Anderson at this stage, but his potential ceiling is perceived by many as actually being higher, with his season taking quite the turn following an inconsistent start. In his first 10 starts he had a 5.09 ERA and .802 OPS, but in nine outings since then he has produced a 2.35 ERA and .569 OPS.

Sloan is in a zone right now, including matching a career-high in his last start with 11 strikeouts. It just seems more than clear he can help the Mariners, especially with the rotation needing to shore things up if they're going to lead the charge towards a hopeful playoff spot. Certainly, at this point we'd rather chance it with the 2024 second-rounder instead of continuing to give starts to compromised versions of Miller and Woo.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow