Seattle Mariners are all injured now

With two more injuries recently, the Seattle Mariners now have more than one-quarter of their 40-man roster dealing with injuries.

Just when you thought it couldn’t get any worse for the Seattle Mariners, it got worse. Two more Mariners left with injuries during yesterday’s Cactus League action, including Ichiro, who never gets injured. Ichiro famously never had an injury that required a training room visit until last year during spring training, when he collided with Brandon Barnes in the outfield.

He’s been on the disabled list once, for a bleeding ulcer in 2009. In yesterday’s game, he was pinch-hit for after playing in the field in the top of the first. He has right calf tightness.

A few innings later, shortstop Jean Segura went first to third on a single, then left the game in the top of the fourth with right hamstring tightness. Segura had hamstring issues last April but didn’t require a stint on the DL. He did hit the DL with a right ankle sprain last June and only played in 125 games. That was the fewest games he played in a season since his rookie year in 2012.

The injuries to Ichiro and Segura are just the latest in an injury-filled spring training for the Mariners. Slugger Nelson Cruz is dealing with a right quad strain that will keep him out of action for a few days. Second baseman Robinson Cano has a left hamstring strain. Outfielder Andrew Romine has a right shoulder partial subluxation, which is probably better than a complete subluxation, as subluxations go.

More severe injuries were suffered earlier this year. The Mariners traded for first baseman Ryon Healy in the hopes that he would play first base and hit dingers. Unfortunately, he was injured even before spring training started and had hand surgery that may cause him to miss the start of the season. The worst injury was suffered by Ben Gamel, who strained his oblique during a session in the batting cage. He’ll miss the first two-to-three weeks of the season.

The pitching staff also has its share of injuries, including a right forearm contusion suffered by Felix Hernandez on a line drive up the middle by Cubs catcher Victor Caratini. Another hit back up the middle took down Marco Gonzalez, who was struck in his non-throwing hand. Initial scans showed no broken bones.

But wait, there’s more. Pitcher Nick Rumbelow has right shoulder discomfort, and Erasmo Ramirez has a strained latissimus dorsi. Ramirez is expected to be the team’s number four starter but likely won’t make a start until at least the middle of April. Ramirez, Hernandez, and Gonzalez are expected to make up three-fifths of the team’s starting rotation. Injuries to the pitching staff last season forced the team to use an MLB-record 40 different pitchers.

Next: Mariners ignore team history and reunite with Ichiro

In total, eleven players on the Seattle Mariners 40-man roster are dealing with injuries right now. Some are more serious than others, of course, and many of these players should (fingers crossed) be fine when the games start to count.

The Mariners have two weeks until Opening Day, which means two weeks to get their starting second baseman, shortstop, DH, and two-fifths of their starting rotation healthy. That still leaves their starting first baseman, left fielder, and another starting pitcher likely unavailable until after the season starts.