Mariners' Kendall Graveman diagnosed with bone tumor in cervical spine

Mariners right-hander Kendall Graveman has been diagnosed with a bone tumor in the C6 part of his cervical spine, Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times reports.

Fortunately, Graveman’s tumor is benign and won’t grow or worsen if he continues to pitch, per Divish. And while Graveman may undergo surgery to address it at some point, that procedure won’t take place “until down the road,” Divish writes. It seems Graveman will even pitch again this year, as his hope is to make one more rehab start in an intraquad game before he’s ready for a return, according to Divish.

Graveman, whom the Mariners signed to a one-year, $1.5M contract last winter, made two appearances for the club this season before landing on the injured list Aug. 4 with what the team described as neck spasms. The 29-year-old was a successful member of the A’s staff from 2015-17, but Tommy John surgery limited him in 2018 and kept him out of action entirely last season.