Blas

Castano

The 26-year-old hurler appeared in just one game during his time with the Mariners, giving up three runs on four hits over his three innings of work. He’ll continue to serve as extra depth at the Triple-A level until he’s needed once more. Casey Lawrence was added to the M’s roster in a corresponding move on Thursday.

The Mariners wanted to add a fresh arm to their bullpen that could give them some length on Friday night, as their bullpen has been taxed recently and Friday’s starter Emerson Hancock has struggled to work deep into games. Castano had been working as a starter at Triple-A Tacoma where he registered a 3.43 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and a 28/19 K/BB ratio across 44 2/3 innings. He’ll be making his big league debut if he gets into a game with the M’s.

Even with George Kirby (shoulder) set to open the season on the injured list, it was always unlikely that Castano would break camp with the big league club. He’ll open the season in the rotation at Triple-A Tacoma while Danner and Fleming function as extra bullpen depth for the M’s.

Castano earns a spot on Seattle’s 40-man roster to shield him from next month’s Rule 5 Draft after posting a respectable 4.38 ERA, 1.37 WHIP and 108/43 K/BB ratio across 125 1/3 innings (29 appearances, 26 starts) between Double-A Arkansas and Triple-A Tacoma.