Mariners Have Moved Kade Anderson Closer to Seattle Without Guaranteeing Him a Spot

Moving up to sixth on a starting-pitching depth chart sounds great until we remember the Mariners love to use only five starters. So essentially Kade Anderson is sitting where Emerson Hancock has been each season until he broke out this year. Still, trading Luis Castillo away freed up the spot for him.

Mariners general manager Justin Hollander confirmed that Anderson moved from seventh to sixth in the pecking order following the Castillo deal. He also said the top pitching prospect is “definitely in the mix” for a rotation opportunity.

Encouraging. But as vague as it gets. Being in the mix doesn’t come with a locker at T-Mobile Park. It doesn’t even come with a debut date. All it means is Anderson has become the first call when Seattle decides it needs another starter. The Mariners still have to decide whether they are willing to create that need themselves. After what went down when they had six guys, this probably means an injury has to occur.

The Mariners’ Five Rotation Spots Are Already Occupied

The M’s have returned to a traditional five-man rotation featuring Logan Gilbert, Bryce Miller, George Kirby, Bryan Woo and Emerson Hancock. They are major leaguers with legitimate claims to their turns. None of them are figured to be a casualty for Anderson to receive a spot this season.

The Mariners traded Castillo and removed one arm from an overcrowded rotation. They didn’t actually leave a seat empty. Miller reclaimed one, Hancock held onto another, and Anderson merely moved closer, even though he’s still stationed in Double-A Arkansas.

Let’s call sixth place what it is in a five-man rotation. He’s still outside.

Anderson’s performance is not the problem. Hollander described it as “unconscionably good,” and the numbers back it up. Through July 24, Anderson carried a 1.27 ERA, a 0.65 WHIP and a ridiculous 115-to-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 77 2/3 innings at Double-A Arkansas. His latest reported start featured five perfect innings and seven strikeouts.

We have reached the point where another clean outing in Arkansas doesn’t tell us anything new.

President of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto has indicated that Anderson will work as a starter whenever his promotion arrives. That’s the right call. They don’t need to overcomplicate this by using him out of the bullpen.

Anderson has developed as a starter. His four-pitch arsenal, command and ability to work through a lineup are precisely why he has found success this quickly.

If the Mariners call him up, they should give him the ball every fifth or sixth day and let him face major-league lineups. A hybrid role wouldn’t serve either party any good.

The cleanest solution is a six-man rotation later in August. But again, that means fewer immediate turns for the other guys. And they’ve already spent much of this season experimenting with six starters and piggyback arrangements, so the concept is hardly foreign, and would come off a bit condescending.

The Castillo trade changed the rotation’s future even if it didn’t immediately change Anderson’s address. But the Mariners now have an opportunity to spend the final stretch of the season learning something valuable about a pitcher expected to hold a permanent rotation spot in 2027.

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