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SAFECO FIELD -- The Mariners made a slew of roster moves upon their return to Seattle on Tuesday.
The team added right-handed relievers Jean Machi and Emilio Pagan to their roster to provide some needed bullpen reinforcements.
It also sent Daniel Vogelbach back to Triple-A Tacoma after his struggles with the major league team over the last two weeks. Right-handed pitcher Casey Fien was designated for assignment to help clear space for the additions of Machi and Pagan, neither of whom were on the team's 40-man roster. Shawn O'Malley was also moved to the 60-day disabled list to free up a 40-man spot.
“We decided we want to go back to 13 pitchers,” manager Scott Servais said. “We have juggled the roster and pitching here quite a bit in the first month. Hopefully we can settle it down, but sometimes that’s what injuries cause you to do and you are trying to get guys to perform. That’s where we are at.”
Machi, 35, is 1–0 with four saves and with four strikeouts and one walk in eight relief appearances with Tacoma this season. He has yet to allow a run this year. He's appeared in a total of 189 career games with a 12-2 record and a 3.47 ERA. He last appeared in the major leagues with Boston in 2015, pitching in 26 games with a 5.09 ERA.
“He’s been on a World Series team and he has good secondary pitches,” Servais said. “He’s been through the wars, hopefully he can bring some stability to our bullpen.”
Pagan, 25, will be making his Major League debut in his first appearance. He earned one save and posted a 3.27 ERA with 18 strikeouts and seven walks in six relief appearances with AAA Tacoma this season.
Pagan pitched for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic in March.
Fien, 33, had really struggled in his limited appearances with Seattle this season. He allowed 10 runs in six innings of work in six total appearances.
Vogelbach, 24, was also struggled. He hit .143 with one RBI in six games with the Mariners after being re-called from Tacoma on April 23.
Photo Credit: LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 22: Pitcher Emilio Pagan #13 of team Puerto Rico in the ninth inning against team United States during Game 3 of the Championship Round of the 2017 World Baseball Classic at Dodger Stadium on March 22, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images)