Sunday's series finale wraps a weekend set in Seattle at 1:10 PM PT, with both clubs trying to stop the bleeding after lousy midweek showings. The Mariners are in piggyback mode through the All-Star break, so whatever "starter" gets the ball is really just the first of two arms — Bryce Miller and Luis Castillo opened the series Friday under that plan.
The bigger pre-game story is the bandwidth in both lineups. Julio Rodriguez left Wednesday's loss to Baltimore with a hamstring spasm and is day-to-day, while Josh Naylor (shin/wrist) and Luke Raley (back) both sat that same night. Randy Arozarena is on the 10-day with his own hamstring, so Dan Wilson is patching together an outfield with duct tape heading into the weekend.
- Day-To-DayHobie Harris RP — Harris was optioned to Triple-A Rochester on Saturday, Jesse Dougherty of The Washington Post reports.
- 10-Day-ILRoman Anthony LF — Anthony (finger) underwent a follow-up MRI on Tuesday that came back clean, but he's not yet cleared to swing a bat, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.
- 10-Day-ILNick Sogard 3B — Sogard (oblique) told reporters Friday that he plans to start swinging a bat Monday, Gabrielle Starr of the Boston Herald reports.
- developmental listNoah Song SP — Song (elbow) was reinstated from Double-A Portland's 7-day injured list Friday and made his 2025 debut for the affiliate in relief Sunday, striking out one and issuing one walk over a scoreless inning.
- 15-Day-ILJovani Moran RP — The Red Sox placed Moran on the 15-day injured list Saturday, retroactive to Friday, with left elbow inflammation, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.
- 60-Day-ILPatrick Sandoval SP — Sandoval (biceps) went three innings, allowing one earned run on one hit and one walk while striking out four Wednesday for Double-A Portland, reports Christopher Smith of MassLive.com.
- 60-Day-ILRomy Gonzalez 1B — Gonzalez (shoulder) went 1-for-2 with a walk and a two-run home run for Double-A Portland on Tuesday.
- 60-Day-ILGarrett Crochet SP — Crochet (shoulder/lat) began throwing a plyometric ball Tuesday as the first step of his throwing program, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
- Day-To-DayJulio Rodriguez CF — Rodriguez was pulled from Wednesday's game against Baltimore due to hamstring spasms, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.
- Day-To-DayJosh Naylor 1B — Naylor (shin/wrist) isn't in the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Orioles.
- Day-To-DayLuke Raley RF — Raley (back) is out of the lineup for Wednesday's matchup against Baltimore.
- Day-To-DayDane Dunning RP — The Mariners signed Dunning to a minor-league contract Thursday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
- 10-Day-ILRandy Arozarena LF — Arozarena (hamstring) isn't in the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Orioles, Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times reports.
- 10-Day-ILBrendan Donovan 3B — Donovan (groin) began a running progression Tuesday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILCooper Criswell RP — Criswell was diagnosed with a Grade 1-plus pectoral strain Tuesday, Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reports.
- 15-Day-ILMatt Brash RP — General manager Justin Hollander said Tuesday that Brash was diagnosed with a Grade 1 strain in his right lat, Shannon Drayer of SeattleSports.com reports.
Boston is somehow even more chewed up. Trevor Story had sports hernia surgery and is gone for 6-10 weeks, Roman Anthony is on the 10-day with a finger issue and still hasn't been cleared to swing, and the rotation is missing Garrett Crochet, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, and Patrick Sandoval. Triston Casas is inching toward swinging a bat. That's basically half a roster sitting in the trainer's room.
The form line tells you everything you need to know about how the Red Sox got to 29-42. They got swept at home by Toronto, capped by an ugly 3-0 shutout where they went 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Seattle is just 38-37 and dropped 2 of 3 to a bad Nationals team last week, but they're at least scratching out wins at home.
Stylistically this is rough for Boston. The Mariners' piggyback gimmick gives them a fresh second arm in the 4th or 5th, which is exactly the spot the Red Sox lineup — minus Anthony, Story, and Casas — is least equipped to punish. Even if Julio is held out as a precaution, Cal Raleigh and the home park do plenty against a lefty-heavy Boston staff.
Bottom line for the finale: Seattle is the more functional roster on a Sunday afternoon, and Boston is a team trying to escape Seattle without their losing streak hitting double digits. Anchor your weekend plans around the Mariners side and the wind-up of the piggyback experiment.