4 Mariners players who are putting up eye-catching numbers this Spring

Tyson Miller

You might be asking yourself "Who the heck is Tyson Miller?" And you may be correct in doing that. A quick trip over to his baseball reference page would make you scratch your head even more. Miller has a career 6.97 ERA over his 31 career innings at the Major League level. He has struck out 18 and walked 17 in those 31 innings. He was brought over to camp as a non-roster invitee, so not much was expected out of him.

As Jerry Dipoto has done over his career as the Mariners General Manager and President of Baseball Operations, he finds diamonds in the rough in the relief pitcher market. Paul Sewald, Drew Steckenrider, Justin Topa, Gabe Speier, and others were all cast always from other teams and turned themselves into high-leverage arms in Seattle. Tyson Miller has a real shot to add his name to that list.

Miller has pitched in eight innings so far this Spring, and has only given up 5 hits and no earned runs. He has walked only 2, and struck out 10. Mariners manager Scott Servais compared him to Paul Sewald, which is incredible. Miller seems to have bought in to the Mariners pitching philosophy, and that should only mean good things for him.

The problem is, he is not yet on the 40-man roster. He will likely start the year down in Tacoma, even with some key injuries in the bullpen. Matt Brash and Gregory Santos will likely start the season on the injured list, and Jackson Kowar will be out for the season following elbow surgery. The good news is there will be a spot opened up on the 40-man once Kowar lands on the 60-day injured list. Miller has as good of a chance as any of the guys in similar boats. Look for big things from Miller this year.

As always, Go Mariners!