Mariners reliever's surprise success rubbing more salt in Red Sox's wound

In the pantheon of would-be 2026 contenders, the Mariners are a disappointment with a few regrets. But at least they're not the Red Sox, whose demoralized fanbase is bemoaning everything from Alex Cora's firing to the notable lack of Cooper Criswell.

He was shown the door out of Boston after the Red Sox added Johan Oviedo in a trade with the Pirates. Criswell was then a Met for a hot minute before they designated him for assignment, which subsequently led to a trade to the Mariners.

Team-hopping of this sort is reserved for journeymen with seemingly little to offer, but Red Sox fans had been holding out hope that Criswell could become A Guy in Boston. He's instead now finding Guy status in Seattle, posting a 2.51 ERA as a multi-inning fireman (14.1 IP, to be exact) across his first 11 appearances as a Mariner.

Sucks to be the Red Sox, one supposes, but it's a good thing for the Mariners that there are no givesies backsies in this situation.

Cooper Criswell is for the Mariners what Boston fans wished he would become for the Red Sox

We can, of course, keep things in perspective and be mindful about overselling what Criswell has meant to the 2026 Mariners.

His surface-level stats are excellent, but we've all watched the games and we all know that Dan Wilson has used the righty almost exclusively in low-leverage spots. He's faced only 14 batters in medium- or high-leverage, compared to 39 in low-leverage.

Even so, recent events concerning Matt Brash should have the Mariners fanbase feeling extra thankful for any length out of the bullpen. The other truth is that Criswell is just plain fun to watch. To namedrop another former Red Sox, he has a slight resemblance to Bronson Arroyo with his low, whipping arm action and his ability to spin the ball.

To boot, the 29-year-old's stuff is playing up in relief. His sinker is up 1.7 mph over his average from 2024, when he logged 99.1 innings for Boston. He also has a 77.2 contact percentage, compared to a career rate of 84.1 percent.

Though Criswell was largely a spare wheel as a Red Sox, a role like the one he's playing now was always a distinct possibility that Craig Breslow just never really explored. As with a lot of other things going on right now, that looks like a reason to question his judgment.

Breslow may have pinned the blame on Cora, but he's the one who built a team that is currently 12-19, And yes, the Red Sox are somehow even more unwatchable than their record indicates. It doesn't help that they were supposed to be a pitching powerhouse, and are instead so starved for quality arms that the loss of Criswell looms that much larger.

Though their own 16-16 record is nothing to boast of, Criswell's rise is one extent to which the grass really is greener on the Mariners' side. Until more wins start coming, you gladly take wins like that.

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