Reigning Cy Young winner Robbie Ray to start opening day, make debut for Mariners against Twins
PEORIA, Ariz. — Given the condensed nature of this spring training and the slotting of the starting pitching through the first dozen games, it became quite clear who the Mariners would name as their opening-day starting pitcher.
But Mariners manager Scott Servais played coy for the first few weeks of spring, saying he wanted to sit down with a couple of pitchers before making the announcement.
On Thursday, Servais announced that left-hander Robbie Ray, the reigning American League Cy Young Award winner, will take the ball on the afternoon of April 7 to face the Minnesota Twins at Target Field.
“This guy is the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, and he’s had a really good camp,” Servais said. “I’m certainly excited to see what he can do for us for the next few years.”
Following a 2021 with the Blue Jays, where he posted a 13-7 record with a 2.84 ERA in 32 starts and 248 strikeouts and only 52 walks in 193 1/3 innings, the Mariners signed Ray to a 5-year, $115 million contract to be a “lead dog” in their rotation.
Ray came to camp and impressed coaches and teammates with his intensity and focus to everything baseball related while fitting into a tight-knit clubhouse.
“He’s been great,” Servais said. “I actually had a sit-down with him and the pitching coaches (on Wednesday) for a while. It’s fun to listen to veteran players when they’ve gone through the different things throughout their career, knowing that they’re willing to give back to some of our younger guys. I’m excited to see him out there and see where it goes.”
A monster on the mound and something more than mellow off it, Ray seemed measured in his excitement about the honor of being the opening-day starter. It’s something he’s never done in the eight seasons of his MLB career.
“For me, I just like the thought of setting the tone for the season,” Ray said. “I think it’s an important game and I’m looking forward to it. I never really thought a whole lot about it. But again, we play 162 games, so I never really put a whole lot of thought into the meaning behind it. I’m definitely excited and honored that they picked me.”
But to Ray, it’s still the first of what he hopes to be 30-plus starts in the 2022 season not counting the playoffs.
“I’m excited for this year,” Ray said. “I’m excited to for what this staff is going to do this year. We’ve got a lot of great guys and a lot of good guys with a lot of good stuff, so it’s going to be fun.”
It might not be fun throwing in possible light snowfall and temps in the mid-30s, which is the forecast for Minneapolis on opening day. But he also pitched for the Tigers in 2014.
“We had a pretty cold game in Cleveland last year with wind whipping,” he said. “My wife is from Michigan and I lived in western Michigan. So I’m kind of used to the cold weather.”
Ray also confirmed he’s a no sleeves pitcher regardless of the temps. And the tight pants? Well those are a given.
Marco Gonzales, who has been the Mariners’ opening-day starter the past three seasons, will slot into the third spot in the rotation with right-hander Logan Gilbert splitting up the two left-handed pitchers in the No. 2 spot. Right-hander Chris Flexen will pitch after Gonzales while the fifth spot is still being decided between talented right-handed pitching prospects Matt Brash and George Kirby.
The ultra-intense Gonzales, who fought back tears when he was named the opening-day starter in 2019, showed no irritation about Servais going with Ray on opening day.
“I’m here to win. I’m here to pitch. I’m here to take the ball whenever my spot comes up,” Gonzales said. “It was a big deal to me. It was an honor, but I’m not hanging my hat or the success of my season on getting the opening day started. I feel like it’s been a huge honor, and I haven’t taken that for granted. Like I told Skip (Servais), I think we have five guys that could lead this rotation at any time.”
By being in the third spot, Gonzales is slated to start the home opener April 15 vs. the Astros.
The last time he pitched at T-Mobile Park was on Oct. 1 in front of a frenzied, sold-out crowd of 44,169 fans.
“I’m really excited for that,” he said. “Just to be able to start to plan for that as far as family wise and all that business, and especially being Jackie Robinson Day at home against the Astros. I feel like it’s a gonna be really special. I hope it’s going to be as electric as our last home series was last year. I think we all have that kind of expectation. I know certainly, we’re excited to get back and play in front of our fans.”
With his personality, on-field performance and his commitment to preparation, Gonzales has been the leader of the pitching staff over the last few seasons. But he’s found a similar mindset in Ray and the two have bonded.
“Robbie is super relaxed, which is a breath of fresh air for me certainly,” Gonzales said. “I tend to be a little more kind of intense on start days, so I think it’s given me a good perspective of not taking myself so seriously and coming in having fun. We’ve bonded over wine. We’re both big wine lovers. You know our wives that have gotten to know each other a little bit. He’s just a great dude, and I’m happy to have him around here and I’ve been learning from it too. I hope to just continue to build that relationship with him too.”
As for the fifth spot, Brash and Kirby are scheduled to pitch Friday night at Peoria Stadium vs. the Rockies. Servais will make a decision in the days after their outing.
“Those guys know where they’re at and they know where we’re at in spring training,” Servais said. “It’s their first time through it. I’m kind of curious to see how they handle it. I think George and Matt did a nice job last time out. They’re starting to look more comfortable and letting their stuff play and trusting their stuff. We’ll throw them out there tomorrow night and see how that goes.”
Brash hasn’t allowed a run in five innings with a walk and seven strikeouts. Kirby has allowed six runs on eight hits in 4 2/3 innings. But his most recent outing, a start vs. the A’s, he pitched three scoreless innings, allowing three hits while striking out six and walking one.
“We got a couple of lightning bolts battling it out,” Gonzales said.
The lightning bolts have impressed the Cy Young Award winner.
“They both got electric stuff,” Ray said. “Just watching their bullpen sessions and how they carry themselves during the games and their everyday activities here in spring, they’re both really good. It’s exciting. They kind of add a little bit of a different dynamic to rotation. So either one of those guys, whatever ends up, I think we’re going to be in a good spot.”
Notes
Still feeling the effects from a dental surgery to remove a pair of upper molars on Tuesday, shortstop J.P. Crawford was scratched from Thursday’s starting lineup.
Crawford looked miserable as he was trying to sleep on the clubhouse couch in the afternoon, saying: “It feels like my face has a heartbeat.”