Already battling for their playoff lives with the Oakland Athletics having created some major separation in the race for the final AL Wildcard spot, the Seattle Mariners will be without one of their best starters for the time being.
Seattle announced on Monday that it has placed lefty Marco Gonzales on the 10-day disabled list with a neck strain.
Gonzales, 26, leads the Mariners with 12 wins on the season. Though, he’s been struggling big time as of late. Over the course of his past four starts, the former St. Louis Cardinals first-round pick has pitched to a 10.35 ERA. Prior to that, he posted a 3.38 ERA with 12 wins in 17 decisions.
It certainly has to be of some concern for the Mariners. They’re not incredibly deep in the starting rotation and he had been the team’s most consistent starter up until some recent struggles.
Seattle opened Monday’s action five games behind Oakland for the final wildcard spot and 6.5 back of Houston in the American League West.