Luis Castillo steps in as batsman after Mariners lose designated hitter due to injury

With Cal Raleigh — Seattle’s other catcher — already in the lineup as designated hitter, the Mariners were forced to give up the DH when Raleigh entered the game from behind the plate in the third inning. That meant Castillo had to be put in the lineup and in the fourth inning he stepped to the plate for his first plate appearance since October 1, 2021, when he was still with Cincinnati.

The bat never left Castillo’s shoulder as he struck out while facing three pitches. He was the first pitcher to bat at T-Mobile Park since Oakland’s Jason Hammel in 2014 and just the third Mariners pitcher to bat in a home game in franchise history.

Castillo is one of two baseball pitchers in action this season other than Arizona’s Scott McGough, who struck out in an April 3 loss to the New York Yankees.

Garver was injured when a fastball from Minnesota starter Joe Ryan came in and struck him on his right wrist at the start of the second inning. Garver stayed in the game to run, but was immediately replaced by Raleigh to start the next inning. The team said Garver suffered a contusion to his right wrist.

Seattle had three catchers on the roster for a while, with Seby Zavala serving as Raleigh’s backup while Garver was primarily the DH. But Zavala was recently designated for assignment, leaving just two potential catchers on the roster.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb