Mariners, veteran reliever Ryan Dull agree to minors deal

The Mariners have agreed to a minor-league contract with veteran reliever Ryan Dull, tweets FanSided’s Robert Murray. He’ll presumably head to their Triple-A affiliate to join their bullpen.

Dull, 31, debuted with the A’s back in 2015 and had a huge 2016 season, delivering 74 1/3 innings of 2.42 ERA ball (3.33 SIERA) with what was then a well-above-average 25.2% strikeout rate and an excellent 5.2% walk rate. He’s never replicated that success, but Dull managed solid K/BB numbers and respectable fielding-independent marks in 2017-18.

A 2019 season split between the A’s, Yankees and Blue Jays, however, was an utter disaster for the righty. Dull tallied just 12 2/3 innings in the majors that year and was slammed for 19 runs (18 earned) on 25 hits (including five homers) and seven walks with 15 strikeouts.

Dull hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since that time. He’d signed back with the Jays on a minor-league deal last winter but wasn’t part of their 60-man player pool when play resumed last summer. Dull inked a deal with the Winnipeg Goldeneyes of the independent American Association back in January, but he’ll now return to affiliated ball just a couple of weeks before the American Association was set to commence its season.

Mariners relievers have been excellent this season, pitching to a collective 2.55 ERA that ranks third in the majors, while their 3.62 FIP is good for sixth-best among MLB clubs. There won’t be an immediate spot for Dull, but he’ll give the club an experienced depth option as the organization looks to manage workloads on a generally young pitching staff after last year’s shortened schedule.