Rob Rasmussen

The Mariners acquired Rasmussen at the trade deadline last season in the deal that sent reliever Mark Lowe to the Blue Jays. His numbers in 19 appearances with the Mariners looked ugly, but they're skewed by three rough outings in which he allowed 13 of his 17 earned runs in just 2.2 innings. In his other 12.2 innings across 16 outings, he posted a 2.84 ERA. Rasmussen threw the ball well for Triple-A Buffalo prior to the trade, giving up just 11 earned runs (2.36 ERA) and striking out 40 batters over 42 innings. Control was an issue, though, as he walked 4.29 per nine. A 2010 second-round pick by the Marlins, the left-handed Rasmussen has a low-to-mid-90s fastball and an effective slider. He also mixes in a curve and changeup. New general manager Jerry Dipoto overhauled the Seattle bullpen in the offeseason, but he notably held onto Rasumussen. After Charlie Furbush, the Mariners don't have an established bullpen lefty, which Rasmussen could fill with a good spring training.