Mariners release relievers Sergio Romo, Joey Gerber

The Seattle Mariners announced this evening that relievers Sergio Romo and Joey Gerber have each cleared waivers and been granted their unconditional release. Both pitchers were designated for assignment in recent days and are now free agents.

Romo is the more accomplished and well-known of the duo. A 15-year MLB veteran, the righty has earned an All-Star nod and was part of three World Series teams with the San Francisco Giants. He owns a career 3.20 ERA through 719 innings spread across seven teams. Romo’s low arm slot and wipeout slider have allowed him to particularly dominate right-handed opponents throughout his career, but he’s generally been quite good against batters from both sides of the dish.

That hasn’t been the case in 2022, however, as Romo’s stint in Seattle didn’t pan out. He allowed 13 runs in 14 1/3 innings as a Mariner, serving up six longballs in that limited time. Romo was tagged for homers in each of his final two appearances, and the Mariners moved on from him on Monday. They’ll remain on the hook for the balance of his $2M salary, with any signing club only responsible for the league minimum for any time Romo spends on their active roster.

Gerber, 25, is in a much different spot of his career. He has just 17 MLB appearances to his name, all of which came back in 2020. The former eighth-round pick spent all of last season on the minor league injured list. That has been more or less the case this year as well. Gerber was dealing with a forearm strain in spring training. He made one rehab outing in rookie ball a few weeks back but hasn’t pitched since that point.

Injured players can’t be placed on outright waivers, so Gerber’s release was a formality once the Mariners took him off the 40-man roster. It’s possible they’ll look to bring him back via minor league deal now that he’s passed through waivers, but he’s free to explore similar opportunities elsewhere.