Mariners calling up promising pitching prospect Nick Davila from Double-A

A promising pitching prospect is about to join the Mariners straight from Double-A Arkansas.

No, sorry, it's not one of those promising young arms.

Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan, the Mariners' Nos. 1 and 2 pitching prospects, are both showing dominant potential pitching for the Arkansas Travelers, and both could be in line for a big-league promotion at some point this summer.

But not today.

The Mariners, instead, announced Saturday that they are promoting right-handed reliever Nick Davila from Double-A to the big-league bullpen.

Davila, 27, will make his MLB debut when he appears in a game for the Mariners. The club had an open spot on its 40-man roster.

Left-hander Josh Simpson was optioned back to Tacoma, a day after the Mariners promoted him from Triple-A.

Davila has a 10-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio in his first nine innings for Arkansas this season, with two saves and a hefty 69.6% groundball rate.

With Matt Brash landing on the injured list Friday with what the team has described as mild lat inflammation, the Mariners are shuffling through options in the bullpen for the time being.

Promotions from Double-A to the majors aren't common, though they aren't entirely out of the ordinary for the Mariners.

Bryan Woo and Bryce Miller were both promoted from Arkansas to Seattle in 2023, for example, after a rash of injuries to the Mariners' rotation that season.

It's not out of the question that Anderson and Sloan could make that leap, too.

Anderson, 21, has simply been the most productive pitcher in the minor leagues through the first month of the season.

The No. 3 overall pick in last summer's draft, Anderson threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings for Arkansas on Friday night, allowed just four hits with no walks and eight strikeouts.

In his first five professional starts, the 21-year-old left-hander has allowed only one run in 24 1/3 innings, sporting a 0.37 ERA with 13 hits allowed (no home runs) and a 38-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio.

The 20-year-old Sloan, a 6-foot-5 right-hander, hasn't had the same results as Anderson (who could?) so far, but Sloan has flashed his sizable potential, touching 100 mph and striking out 17 batters in his first 14 innings.

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This story was originally published May 2, 2026 at 4:54 PM.