Mariners return to bold pitching strategy that caused drama and Dan Wilson got his way

At least temporarily, the piggyback experiment the Seattle Mariners have been carrying out with Bryce Miller and Luis Castillo is going on hiatus. Given all the drama that has surrounded it, it's ironic how sad it is to see it go.

The Miller-Castillo pairing is fresh off giving the Mariners a parting gift on Sunday, as the two right-handers each threw exactly 5.0 in the club's sweep-sealing 3-2 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

All this happened in the wake of an overdue air-clearing session last Tuesday that resulted in all the relevant parties getting on the same page, and Dan Wilson might as well have gotten the last laugh on Sunday. Miller and Castillo each threw exactly 71 pitches, allowing Wilson to make good on his initial sermons about the piggyback and equitability.

Even Miller, who's normally one to speak more bluntly, had to dig it: “That’s kinda cool. Even split.”

In the end, the only real wreckage the Miller-Castillo piggyback is leaving behind is the decimation it wrought on hitters. In three turns, it produced 27 innings with a 1.67 ERA and a 0.741 WHIP.

This is not, however, to suggest that splitting them up and returning to a six-man rotation for the next couple weeks is the wrong call.

The Mariners are in the middle of playing 16 games in 17 days, with a 10-day, 10-game road trip between June 5 and June 14. Even setting aside the value of treating Miller and Castillo like the respected starters they are, temporarily splitting them up allows for their rotation compatriots to get the rest they need.

The piggyback was a pain in the neck, but the Mariners could miss it while it's gone

All that said, it's hard to separate the initial arrival of the piggyback from the turn for the better the Mariners have taken.

They first used Miller and Castillo as a tandem on May 19. Since then, the Mariners have an MLB-low 2.45 ERA and have won eight out of 11. It also had a real impact on the bullpen's workload, as Wilson didn't need to use any relievers in either of the last two piggyback games.

Assuming there are no injuries between, nobody should be surprised if Wilson pushes for the piggyback to return after the six-man rotation runs its course. It did ultimately work as intended, after all, and everyone seems to have learned the right lessons about communication.

It doesn't necessarily have to be Miller and Castillo again if the piggyback does make a comeback. Miller's overall form since his return off the IL has been a little too Misiorowski-esque to keep wasting in five-inning spurts. So, maybe Emerson Hancock can take a turn with Castillo.

Yes, we are surprised that we're spitballing about the piggyback like this. But that speaks to the confidence the concept has earned, for which everyone — Miller, Castillo, Wilson, Jerry Dipoto, et al — can gladly or begrudgingly take a bow.

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