Seattle Mariners Reliever is Embracing Jack-of-All-Trades Role With Team
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SEATTLE — The Seattle Mariners bullpen has been one of the most tumultuous units on the team this season. The front end of the unit has been in constant flux, with the only consistency seemingly coming from the high-leverage relievers. Outside of back-end pitchers Gabe Speier, Matt Brash and closer Andres Munoz, the Mariners have a Swiss army knife-esque reliever that is quietly putting together a career-best season.
Right-handed pitcher Eduard Bazardo has been used in a variety of roles this year and has excelled in most of them.
The sixth-year pitcher has posted a 2.81 ERA this season with 47 strikeouts in 51.1 innings pitched across 45 appearances entering Thursday. He's allowed an opposing batting average of .189. His strikeouts, innings and appearances this season are all single-season career highs.
"He's really throwing the ball well," Seattle manager Dan Wilson said in a postgame interview July 19. "One of those guys that has gotten opportunities at different points in the ball game and found himself in higher leverage situations and has really delivered. ... He continues to just put up zeroes and that's what the job of a reliever is all about, and it's been very impressive."
The day that Wilson provided that quote, the Mariners won 7-6 in 11 innings against the Houston Astros. Bazardo threw a scoreless 11th inning, retired the side in order and struck out two batters, which set the team up to walk it off in the bottom of the 11th.
"I like working in different roles this year," Bazardo said in an interview July 22. "And my (mindset) is 'I need to keep attacking the hitter and try to make the inning end quick.' Like (as) quick I can to be safe to be ready the next day."
Eduard Bazardo has been elite since June 6th (21 IP | 1.29 ERA)
— Kick Dirt Baseball (@KickDirtBB) July 21, 2025
He’s cut back on his FF usage to both RHH/LHH (27% in May 📉 8% in July) and is now going to his SI (19% in May 📈 48% in July). This is the most he’s ever used his SI, but it’s been his best pitch since. pic.twitter.com/OpWOZh51lt
Bazardo has provided the M's a solid option out of the bullpen no matter the situation. According to FanGraphs, Bazardo has pitched 33.1 innings in low leverage, 9.2 innings in medium leverage and 8.1 innings in high leverage. Hitters are averaging just .077 against him in high-leverage spots.
Bazardo was acquired by Seattle in a trade with the Baltimore Orioles on Aug. 1, 2023. He began his career with the Boston Red Sox, who signed him as an undrafted free agent out of Venezuela on Sept. 4, 2014.
The Red Sox are an organization that prioritize secondary pitches over the fastball, which seemed to be an environment Bazardo would thrive on. His slider has been his bread and butter since making his major league debut, and that's continued this season. Bazardo has thrown his slider 385 times in 2025 — 100 times more than his second most-offered pitch, the two-seam fastball (sinker), per Baseball Savant.
The Mariners preach attacking the strike zone, and Bazardo has managed to balance both approaches with his slider as a catalyst. He's allowed an opposing batting average of just .177 with it. He's used the slider as a set-up pitch for his sinker, which he's thrown the second-most in his arsenal this season (237 times). He's allowed an opposing batting average of just .107 with his sinker and has a whiff rate of 21% with a put-away rate of 32.8%.
Those stats are a shift for Bazardo. His slider had the highest whiff rate (33%) and put-away rate (23%) in his repertoire in 2024.
"Here, they put focus on the breaking ball, too," Bazardo said. "When (Boston) signed me, they knew I got a really good breaking ball, they were more focused on that. And they tried to put me in a better situation, how I can use my breaking ball and everything. And I learned that and I'm putting in practice right now here that's helped me out a lot."
Bazardo has provided something Seattle has needed in several situations this season: consistency. And that will be something the Mariners bullpen depends on going forward.
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