Luis Castillo Looked Ready to Go, and the M's Finally Get Real Ball Back
Spring training is over. Luis Castillo threw five innings of absolute filth on Monday afternoon in Peoria, and now the Mariners are heading home to get ready for the real thing. The Padres beat them 10-3 in the Cactus League finale, but honestly? That score doesn't matter. What matters is that Castillo looked like the ace we need him to be when it counts.
Castillo Was Locked In
The man was dealing. Castillo allowed just one run on four hits with five strikeouts, one walk, and one hit batter over his five innings of work. He threw 76 pitches and got 14 whiffs, which is the kind of stuff that wins playoff games come October. His four-seam fastball averaged 94.9 mph and touched 97.1. Half of his swings-and-misses came on that fastball. Yeah, he's ready.
The Lineup Got Its Reps In
The five guys who figure to be atop the opening day lineup all got at least two plate appearances Monday. Cal Raleigh went 2 for 3 and absolutely crushed a double off the wall in left-center field in the first inning that measured 114.2 mph off the bat. Statcast says it would've been a home run at 20 MLB parks, including T-Mobile Park. That's a sign of things to come.
Julio Rodriguez drove in a run with a single in the first, scoring Brendan Donovan, who has been a revelation at the plate this spring. Donovan, the new third baseman, slashed .413/.491/.543 (1.034 OPS) over 57 plate appearances in his first spring with the team. Randy Arozarena also got his work in, hitting his second homer of spring off Padres starter Germán Márquez in the third inning.
The Mariners finished Cactus League play 11-19, which matches their spring record from 2025. Matt Brash and Carlos Vargas also got their innings in, with Brash allowing one walk and an unearned run in the sixth and Vargas pitching a scoreless seventh.
Now the Real Season Starts
The team flew out of Peoria immediately after Monday's game. They've got Tuesday off, a team workout at T-Mobile Park on Wednesday evening, and then it's game time. Thursday night against the Cleveland Guardians at 7:10 p.m. Logan Gilbert gets the ball for his second straight opening day start, facing Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee. This is what we've been waiting for.
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This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.