Stoudt, who was claimed off waivers by the Mariners from the Reds in mid-February, is making a case to enter the rotation mix at some point this coming season, Steve Stockmar of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Stoudt is in his second stint with the Mariners organization, having originally entered professional baseball as Seattle's third-round pick in the First-Year Player Draft back in 2019. He was eventually dealt to the Reds in 2022 and got his first taste of the big leagues with Cincinnati last season, pitching to a 0-1 record, 9.58 ERA and 2.32 WHIP across the 10.1 innings covering his four appearances (two starts). However, Stoudt was impressive in his Cactus League debut Tuesday, allowing a hit and recording two sstrikeouts over two scoreless innings versus the Guardians while hitting 97 mph with his fastball and also deploying his slider and splitter effectively. Manager Scott Servais is optimistic about Stoudt's chances of eventually contributing as a starter in 2024, noting the need to have more than just five rotation members over the course of a season and adding "I do think he helps us at some point this year."