The Mariners announced that they have selected the contract of infielder Patrick Wisdom. He will take the active roster spot of infielder/outfielder Rob Refsnyder, who has been placed on the paternity list. To open a 40-man spot for Wisdom, right-hander Blas Castaño has been designated for assignment.
Wisdom, 34, gets back to the majors for the first time since 2024. He spent a few years with the Cubs as an extreme offensive contributor. He would strike out a ton but also hit home runs. From 2021 to 2023, he hit at least 23 homers in each season but also struck out at least 34% of the time in each of those campaigns. His numbers declined in 2024 and he ended up in South Korea in 2025.
He had a strong showing overseas. He hit 35 home runs for the Kia Tigers, with a slightly improved strikeout rate of 29.2%. He parlayed that into a return to North America, signing a minor league deal with the Mariners. He has been crushing the ball in Triple-A so far, with nine home runs in just 15 games. His 22.6% strikeout rate is far better than his previous stints in the majors, though he has naturally been facing a lower level of competition. Even in the hitter-friendly context of the Pacific Coast League, his .264/.371/.774 line is far better than average.
During his time with the Cubs, Wisdom mostly played third base but he has only been used as a first baseman and designated hitter so far this year. The Mariners have Josh Naylor at first base. The DH spot has primarily been used for a platoon of the righty-swinging Refsnyder and the lefty Dominic Canzone. Wisdom swings from the right side and could perhaps replace Refsnyder in that platoon role. His splits aren’t huge but Wisdom has been better against lefties. He has a career .223/.298/.480 line and 112 wRC+ when facing southpaws, compared to a .201/.287/.448 line and 101 wRC+ against righties.
Stints on the paternity list generally only last a few days. A player is allowed to be away for one to three days. Every once in a while, special circumstances will keep a guy away from the club longer. In those instances, he has to be moved to the restricted list.
Assuming Refsnyder is back in the next days and everyone else is healthy, the Mariners could send Wisdom back to Triple-A without putting him on waivers. Despite his previous years in the majors, Wisdom has less than five years of service time and is still optionable. Players coming from overseas can sometimes have special language in their contracts about not being sent to the minors without their consent. Unless Wisdom has such a clause in his deal, it’s possible he could stick around as depth even after Refsnyder returns. Connor Joe is also on the club as a bench bat and isn’t playing much. He’s optionable as well, so that’s another possibility to consider.
Castaño, 27, has been on Seattle’s 40-man roster since November of 2024. Since then, he has only made one big league appearance. In May of last year, he pitched three innings of relief, allowing three earned runs via four hits and two walks while striking out one.
He mostly served as rotation depth in recent years but hasn’t been needed apart from that one outing. He tossed 126 2/3 Triple-A innings last year with a 5.19 earned run average. His 17.8% strikeout rate and 9.3% walk rate were subpar but he did get grounders on 46% of balls in play. So far this year, he’s been used out of the Triple-A bullpen. He has thrown 6 1/3 innings with a 1.42 ERA but has benefitted from a .125 batting average on balls in play, as his 19% strikeout rate is only a modest improvement from his work as a starter last year.
He’ll now head into DFA limbo, which can last as long as a week. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the Mariners could explore trade talks for as long as five days. Castaño is still optionable, which could be appealing for clubs dealing with pitching injuries. If he clears waivers, he could stick with the Mariners as non-roster depth.
Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images
Hope he gets a chance to connect on one for us
Wise
Move.
Wise choice
Jerry was Wise in doing so
High K rate, but if he connects, the ball will get Schwarber’d. Loved watching him on the Cubs. Hope he can help the Mariners out.
Let the puns begin!
I’m feeling it, SpongeBob
These puns are a real kick in the teeth.
He’s back. Time to see what he can do he definitely has slowed down in AAA but still 9 home runs in 15 games is definitely enough to give him a look.
Quite the career arc he’s had. I remember at one point I was thinking “why would we let this guy go when we desperately need hitting?” He’s had to battle his way back into relevancy. You love to see it. I’m sure it’s only temporary but hopefully he makes a good impression.
I thought he’d have been called up instead of Connor Joe, but better late than never. But after watching his platinum-sombrero night a few days ago, I thought he might have blown his shot. Ah well. Someone will have to be DFA when Refsnyder gets back.
Wisdom has all his options remaining and less than 5 years of service time, so they could actually option him, but Joe could be designated for assignment.
It gets more complicated when (if) Robles returns and Emerson is ready to debut.
Then there’s Mastrobuoni who’s on a rehab assignment. Something will have to give at some point.
Always seemed like a good dude. Kept waiting for him to turn a corner, but he never did. Elite power but limited offensive approach. I hope he can stick around in the bigs.
Good to see he’s getting another shot. Wisdom typifies the kind of power hitter who never gets cheated when he puts the bat in motion – 100% effort on every swing. He was fun to watch in Chicago.
Good for him. Not sure who their DH is but they shouldn’t put him at 3B or 1B unless they are down 2 or players go down simultaneously. Unless he improved greatly he should not be playing defense
He’s become almost passable at 1B, but if he’s coming up to replace Refsnyder, they must be thinking of him as a RH DH. Dom Canzone is the LH DH.
Happy to see P Dub make it back to the show. Guy always had great vibes and has power for fun moments…
Almost wouldn’t mind him back on Chicago’s bench for backup 1B/3B against lefties. I don’t hate Kelly getting looks there, but still.
wisdom may have been on track to hit 92 homers in AAA, this season