The Mariners announced today that they have reinstated Logan Gilbert, as expected, to make tonight’s start. Less-expected is the reliever they optioned to Tacoma in his place: Jackson Kowar, who’s been used in a setup man role while Trent Thornton has been on the IL recovering from appendicitis.
Kowar has been solid in his seven outings with the big-league club since returning from TJ surgery after building up some bulk in Tacoma, but the underlying numbers suggest he’s gotten a little lucky; his FIP and xERA are both double his actual ERA. There have been very crisp outings, and some where he’s had to battle around self-inflicted damage like walks or falling behind in counts, something Dan Wilson seemed to hint at while talking about the decision to option Kowar.