Mariners’ Logan Gilbert reunites with Cal Raleigh for final spring start

PEORIA, Ariz. — A quiet “B” game on a scorching Friday morning turned into the Mariners’ most important dress rehearsal when opening-day battery mates Logan Gilbert and Cal Raleigh jogged onto Field No. 1 for the top of the first against the Padres, reuniting for the first time since Raleigh left camp 2 ½ weeks ago to represent the United States in the World Baseball Classic.

With temperatures climbing toward triple digits, the Mariners elected to shield their projected Game 1 starter from a Cactus League matchup later in the evening against the Guardians—the very club Gilbert will face in six days when the regular season opens. Instead, the right-hander threw 80 pitches over five-plus innings in the controlled setting of the back-field contest, working every offering in his arsenal, including experimental changeups and a cutter he hopes to feature more prominently this season.

“I wasn’t expecting him necessarily to be here,” Gilbert said of Raleigh, who caught the night before in Mesa as the designated hitter and still asked to be inserted into Friday’s lineup. “But he was, which is way better, so we can get a feel.”

Raleigh, fresh off a 1-for-5 night that included a 438-foot, bases-loaded double, went 2-for-8 with a two-run homer from the left side and four walks in the twinbill. Behind the plate he called seven or eight sinkers—an offering he discouraged Gilbert from throwing a year ago.

“I probably threw four or five,” Gilbert said with a grin. “I was the one shaking them off. The roles reversed after 10 years.”

Manager Dan Wilson emphasized the importance of the reunion with opening day looming and Raleigh’s camp time limited by international duty.

“It was smart to get a chance to get them together today with this being the final tune-up,” Wilson said. “Just get on the same page and see what his stuff has been doing.”

Veteran utility man Rob Refsnyder also appeared, squeezing in extra at-bats after playing the previous night. Shortstop J.P. Crawford, meanwhile, took swings in the cage as he works back from a cortisone injection in his right shoulder Monday. Wilson said the club could keep Crawford in Arizona through Wednesday for minor-league games before flying him back ahead of Thursday’s opener.

Seattle trimmed the spring roster to 32 players Friday, reassigning left-hander Jhonathan Díaz, right-hander Dane Dunning and outfielder Brennan Davis to minor-league camp. Díaz and Dunning will join Tacoma’s rotation after returning from World Baseball Classic duty with Venezuela and Korea, respectively. Davis, who flashed prodigious power early in camp, has been sidelined five days with hamstring tightness but resumed on-field workouts.