SEATTLE — The Mariners made it official on Saturday: Bryce Miller will start the best-of-seven opener against the Blue Jays on Sunday.
Bryan Woo is also expected to be on Seattle’s 26-man ALCS roster, according to sources, but will not be available for Game 1 in any capacity.
The club wants to go through another consultation with Woo on Saturday to see how he recovered after throwing an up-and-down bullpen session on Friday, as he continues to work back from pectoral inflammation. His bullpen was a positive step forward, but it’s likely that the Mariners will want to see another throwing session of some sort before injecting him in a playoff game.
Woo hasn’t pitched in a game since exiting a Sept. 19 start in Houston, and he was not on their ALDS roster.
Seattle’s 26-man ALCS roster is not due until Sunday morning, and the Mariners were not expected to touch down in Toronto until the 10 p.m. ET range after a late departure on Saturday.
Miller was the only healthy starter who did not pitch in Seattle’s thrilling, 3-2 win in Game 5 of the AL Division Series. But he would be on short rest for Game 1 of the ALCS. Miller started Game 4 of the ALDS on Wednesday in Detroit, throwing 55 pitches over 4 1/3 innings in an eventual loss that forced the winner-take-all Game 5.
Logan Gilbert or Luis Castillo would’ve been the preferred options, both on normal rest, but each were deployed in extra innings on Friday — which proved vital to the Mariners advancing.
Miller surrendered four hits and zero walks among the 16 Tigers batters he faced before being relieved for Gabe Speier in Game 4’s major pivot point. Speier wound up allowing Miller’s inherited runner to score, then another two, then the go-ahead run an inning later on a homer to Riley Greene.
