The Mariners lost left-handed starter/reliever Garrett Olson Friday morning when the Pittsburgh Pirates claimed him off waivers, although “lost is probably not the correct word.
Olson, a soft-thrower who has spent the last two seasons with the Mariners, had appeared in five games this spring with a 5.40 ERA. Hed hoped to land a job in the Seattle rotation this spring, but it had become clear in the last week he was not going to make the 25-man roster come April 1.
The Mariners, who got Olson in the 2009 trade of Aaron Heilman to the Cubs, put him on waivers not because they wanted to lose him, but they needed to create space on the 40-man roster for non-roster players who are going to have to be added to the roster.
Seattle now has 36 men on the 40-man roster, and at a minimum three non-roster players are going to make the team outfielder Ryan Langerhans, reliever Chris Ray and infielder Adam Kennedy. There are 13 other non-roster players in camp, and a couple more have outside shots at making the team outfielder Gabe Gross is one, catcher Josh Bard is one and right-handed reliever Denny Bautista is another.
Olson, who was 3-8 with one save and a 5.26 ERA in his time with the Mariners, will be joining his fourth big league team after the Orioles, Cubs and Mariners.
Talking to the Tacoma News Tribune Friday morning, said he liked his time in Seattle.
“Its hard to leave, Olson said. “The last couple of years, Ive met so many players, so many fans; it was like family. This game is like a fraternity, and Im excited to go to Pittsburgh. Thats the story of baseball.
Twitter: @JHickey3