The Seattle Mariners have placed 3B/SS J.P. Crawford on the 10-day injured list with the hand injury that has held him out the past few games. Crawford appeared to injure his hand on a swing last week, and continued to see it exacerbated despite several days off and some cautious returns to play. In his place is INF Leo Rivas, whose time in Triple-A Tacoma followed a disappointing first half of the year that saw him struggle to replicate his late season success from 2025.
Rivas has been his usual
self in Triple-A, walking at a >20% rate despite hitting for minimal power. Rivas was not able to slug at all in the bigs this year, but still managed a reasonable 12.5% walk rate amidst a ghastly .131/.261/.172 slash line in Seattle through 120 plate appearances. Still, the speedy Rivas covers defensive positions well and allows the M’s a switch-hitting bat on the bench as needed.
For Crawford, it’s a disappointing waylaying for a player who’s been more injury-maligned in 2026 than most years as a Mariner. Losing one of their most OBP-inclined hitters is not what the M’s can easily afford, though this version of Crawford lately has lacked much thump or ability to produce at all, running a 45 wRC+ in the second half after a stellar first couple months that helped the M’s weather poor starts from other stalwarts. He’ll be out for “a few weeks” per M’s GM Justin Hollander, with an injection today that he’ll take a few days off to monitor before beginning to ramp back up.
Beyond this move, UTIL Brendan Donovan received some of the best news he’s been labeled with all year. Donovan, attending the birth of his child per the club and Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times, will be able and ready to rejoin the Mariners for their series with the Detroit Tigers starting on Tuesday, August 4th. Additionally, Carlos Vargas, Cooper Criswell, and Matt Brash appear to be throwing at a pace ready to return between mid-August and early September. Ryan Bliss tweaked his knee in Triple-A Tacoma last Sunday and is seeing a doctor, while SS Felnin Celesten experienced a “minor” back issue and should be back in games soon. Similarly, RHP Brock Moore left a game early this week in Double-A Arkansas but it was due to a finger/blister issue, less of a long-term concern.
