Mariners News & Notes: Joshua Báez Breaks Baseball, Troy Watson Arrives and Casey Lawrence Leaves

Saturday gave us both baseball news and fireworks. The Mariners added another pitcher to the waiting room in Triple-A Tacoma. Casey Lawrence found a new organization willing to keep him busy, and we’re going to step outside the M’s organization to give Joshua Báez his flowers after he introduced himself to the majors by turning Wrigley Field into his personal batting cage.

All very different corners of the baseball world, but they all tell us how a season is built. Depth keeps the machine running. When you’re an established veteran, sometimes there are opportunities to keep careers alive, and every once in a while a kid shows up and reminds us why we watch this strange sport in the first place.

Mariners Claim Troy Watson to Bolster Triple-A Pitching Depth

Seattle claimed right-hander Troy Watson off waivers from the Tigers and immediately optioned him to Triple-A Tacoma. The 29-year-old had been DFA’d three days earlier after Detroit briefly added him to its 40-man roster in July without giving him a major-league appearance.

Watson is pretty much just another arm for the pile. But his numbers aren’t bad. He recorded a 3.27 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 55 innings for Triple-A Toledo this season. Struck out 38 and walked 18 while allowing 42 hits, finishing his Detroit tenure with three consecutive scoreless relief appearances. He doesn’t miss a ton of bats so he definitely comes with some risk.

We should keep the scale of the move straight. Waiver claims are scratch tickets. This is a good small move.

Former Mariners Pitcher Casey Lawrence Signs With Phillies

Casey Lawrence is now with the Philadelphia Phillies, at least in the minor-league sense. They signed the 38-year-old right-hander six days after the Mariners released him, assigning him to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Lawrence leaves Seattle after going 5-6 with a 4.03 ERA and 1.24 WHIP across 120 2/3 innings this season. He started all 21 of his appearances and struck out 74. It’s a fascinating reunion of sorts because Lawrence is from Reading, just about 50 minutes away from where he’ll be pitching.

He’s got a simple job now: take the baseball, throw strikes and keep the organization from having to burn another pitcher to survive a schedule. There’s something admirable about Lawrence’s career. He has lasted by being available and knowing exactly what he is. Plenty of harder throwers have disappeared while he kept showing up.

The Mariners aren’t losing much here, but he gave them honest work.

Joshua Báez Makes MLB History With Three Home Runs in His Debut

Cardinals outfielder Joshua Báez stepped into a major-league batter’s box for the first time Saturday and launched the first pitch he saw 449 feet over the center field wall and into the Wrigley Field seats. Then he did again, but over the right field wall. And then a third time, over the left field wall.

3 home runs in his first 3 Major League at-bats 😤

Did Joshua Báez put on the best MLB debut EVER?! pic.twitter.com/P43Qi4d4cn
— MLB (@MLB) August 15, 2026

Báez became the first player in MLB history to hit three home runs in his major-league debut — and the first to homer in each of his first three career at-bats. He did by punishing a variety of pitches too. He punished a fastball, a changeup and a slider, all from Cubs starter Matthew Boyd. The result was one of the wildest debuts baseball has ever seen. And poor Boyd, he couldn’t get anything past the rookie.

Báez had already been destroying the ball in Triple-A. He hit four home runs in one game in June and reached 28 homers by early July, taking over the minor-league lead while slugging .617 through 75 games. He was a fast riser this season with power that had been screaming for a promotion.

Somehow, reaching the majors only made that power louder. Why does a Cardinals rookie belong in a Mariners roundup? Because why not? Báez can be the measuring stick here.

He represents what proper player development can produce. When Lazaro Montes arrives, the Mariners can only hope he brings that kind of immediate force. Three home runs in his first three at-bats is an absurd bar, obviously, but the larger point stands: prospect hype only matters when it turns into major-league impact.

Seattle’s young hitters don’t need to match the greatest debut in baseball history. That’s not a fair standard. They do need to provide force, urgency and a reason for opposing pitchers to reconsider the comfortable part of the strike zone.

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