LeBlanc out with sore shoulder, Lawrence recalled
Wade LeBlanc left the Mariners most recent game (May 12 vs. DET) with a sore shoulder, and it is now announced that the Mariners long reliever will be out a little under 2 months to rehabilitate the injury. LeBlanc has had 2 poor outings as a starter, but as a reliever, he’s been very valuable due to being able to pitch 2, sometimes 3 innings and save the Mariners from having to use and eventually overuse other guys in the bullpen. He has an ERA in the 3s as a reliever compared to his 13.50 ERA in his two starts (8 ER in 5.1 IP).
In his place, Casey Lawrence has been recalled, coming back into the long relief role. With injuries to Tacoma starters Hisashi Iwakuma and Ashton Goudeau, Lawrence has been starting games in Tacoma ever since he was sent down and he’s had an excellent 1.93 ERA in 3 starts. The Mariners were reportedly considering calling up OF John Andreoli, the guy who replaced Ichiro on the 40-man roster, as the team is currently without a true 4th OF but they decided against it and wanted to keep the 8-man bullpen going, thanks to Andrew Romine’s versatility.
