New Chapter: Former Padres All-Star Joins AL West Team

Former San Diego Padres All-Star pitcher Drew Pomeranz agreed with the Seattle Mariners on a minor league deal earlier this week, per Aram Leighton.

Pomeranz, who had two stints with the Padres in 2016 and then from 2020-21, has not pitched in the major leagues since he was last with the Padres in 2021.

Pomeranz was originally a first-round draft pick by Cleveland in the 2010 MLB Draft, and considered a top-50 prospect the following year. Cleveland traded him to the Colorado Rockies in July 2011, and he made his MLB debut for the team that year. Pomeranz remained with the Rockies through the 2013 season, before he was traded to the Oakland Athletics in Dec. 2013. He spent two seasons with the Athletics, and was then traded to the Padres in Dec. 2015.

Before he was traded to the Padres, Pomeranz had spent much of the 2015 season as a reliever for the Athletics. He asked to start for the Padres, and ended up making the rotation. Pomeranz started 17 games for the Padres during the 2016 season, going 8-7 with a 2.47 ERA and 115 strikeouts. He was named to the MLB All-Star Game that season, but the Padres traded him during the All-Star break to the Boston Red Sox.

Pomeranz spent the next two and a half seasons with the Red Sox, and was part of the Red Sox’s World Series winning team in 2018. He joined the San Francisco Giants and Milwaukee Brewers on brief stints in 2019, before re-signing with the Padres on a four-year deal after the 2019 season.

Pomeranz served as a relief pitcher for the Padres in 2020 and 2021. In 2020, he posted a 1.45 ERA over 20 appearances for San Diego. In 2021, he recorded a 1.75 ERA over 27 appearances. His 2021 season, however, was cut short after he underwent surgery on a torn flexor tendon. He would miss the entire 2022 season, and began the 2023 season in recovery. A cleanup procedure limited Pomeranz to seven minor league appearances in 2023.

The 36-year-old had brief stints with the Los Angeles Angels and Los Angeles Dodgers in 2024 after signing minor league contracts with each team early in the season. He signed a major league contract with the San Francisco Giants that May, but chose free agency after the Giants designated him for assignment.