Mariners sign Washington native Voth to 1-year deal

SEATTLE -- The Mariners added another Pacific Northwest presence to their roster on Wednesday when signing right-hander Austin Voth to a one-year Major League contract. The deal is worth $1.25 million, according to a source, and Voth’s addition brings Seattle’s 40-man roster to capacity.

Voth, 31, represents a depth piece to a pitching staff that appears to be nearly rounded out, with exactly four weeks until it reports to Spring Training, on Feb. 14.

He’ll be stretched out in camp as a starter, to be available for length if needed, then shortened back into a relief role before the regular season, if all goes according to plan with the health of their other arms. The Mariners did this last year with Chris Flexen and wound up needing the veteran in the rotation almost immediately after Opening Day when Robbie Ray suffered a season-ending injury, though Flexen himself struggled his way out of the rotation.

Voth is out of Minor League options, meaning he’ll need to remain on the big league roster all season or be removed from the 40-man entirely.

A three-year pitcher at the University of Washington (2011-13), Voth also attended Kentwood High School in Covington, Wash., where he helped the 2010 squad to the Class 4A Washington state championship. Born in Redmond, Wash., Voth will become the 30th Washington-born player to appear in a game with the Mariners.

Voth spent last season with Baltimore, where he dealt with a right elbow injury that sidelined him more than two months, and when healthy, he saw mixed results exclusively in a relief role. The Orioles designated him for assignment in September, ahead of their playoff run, and he elected free agency at season’s end. For the year, he made 25 relief appearances, with a 5.19 ERA, 15 walks and 34 strikeouts.

Voth came up though the Nationals’ organization, where he was a fifth-round pick in 2013, debuted in 2018 and then was claimed off waivers by the Orioles in 2022. The right-hander has appeared in 139 games (39 starts) across six Major League seasons with the Washington Nationals (2018-22) and Baltimore (2022-23), going 15–14 with a 4.90 ERA with 111 walks and 282 strikeouts.

Though he doesn’t have a clear path to starting in Seattle, Voth represents the latest safety net to the rotation should injury or other attrition arise, perhaps next in line after Anthony DeSclafani, who was acquired from the Giants along with Mitch Haniger in exchange for Robbie Ray and cash considerations earlier this month.

DeSclafani also dealt with arm injuries last season, to both his shoulder and elbow. And though general manager Justin Hollander recently said in a radio hit with Seattle Sports 710 that Bryce Miller and Bryan Woo won’t be on explicit innings thresholds into the regular season, the club will nonetheless ease the second-year starters into spring after career-high workloads as rookies last year.

With their least-limited starters (Ray and Marco Gonzales) out with season-ending injuries early last year -- and gone via offseason trades this winter -- the need for innings-eating reinforcements such as Voth and DeSclafani has been clear.