The Mariners signed Simeon Woods Richardson to a minor league contract. The team’s Triple-A affiliate, the Tacoma Rainiers, announced that the right-hander has been added to their roster.
Woods Richardson elected free agency after being waived by the Blue Jays yesterday. That was the second time this season that Toronto had run him unclaimed through waivers. Woods Richardson is now on his third organization of the season, as he began the year in Minnesota’s rotation.
This has been a difficult season for the 25-year-old. Woods Richardson is a former second-round pick and quality prospect who pitched at a league average level for the Twins from 2024-25. Woods Richardson combined for a 4.11 ERA with a 21.5% strikeout percentage across 51 appearances (all but one as a starter) over those two years. That earned him a spot in Minnesota’s starting five to open 2026.
Woods Richardson’s numbers have tanked this season. He lost his rotation spot after pitching to an ERA close to 8.00 for Minnesota. The Twins pushed him to the bullpen in mid-May, then moved on altogether a couple weeks later. They designated him for assignment and traded him to Toronto for cash.
The Jays kept Woods Richardson stretched out as a starter in Triple-A but used him as a long reliever during his MLB stint. He had decent run prevention marks, giving up eight runs across 18 1/3 innings (3.93 ERA). He issued 12 walks and only recorded 14 strikeouts in that time, however, and the rest of the league twice passed on an opportunity to claim him off waivers.
Seattle has a full five-man rotation but lost Emerson Hancock to an adductor strain over the weekend. They don’t have any other starting pitchers on optional assignment. Jhonathan Díaz and Carson Fulmer are in the Tacoma rotation as non-roster depth, but they’ve both struggled even in the context of the Pacific Coast League. Woods Richardson would return to free agency at season’s end if the Mariners don’t call him up.
