SEATTLE -- Seattle Mariners right-hander Bryce Miller was placed on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation ahead of Wednesday afternoon's game against the New York Yankees.
Miller, 26, struggled in May and gave up a combined 11 earned runs over his past two starts spanning nine innings. He's 2-4 this year with a 5.22 ERA in eight starts.
In a corresponding move, the Mariners recalled left-hander Jhonathan Díaz from Triple-A Tacoma. Díaz, 28, has appeared in seven games for the Rainiers, going 2-3 with a 5.87 ERA. He made one relief appearance with Seattle earlier this season, tossing 1 1/3 scoreless innings with a strikeout against Detroit on April 1.
Miller said he has dealt with right elbow issues since the end of the 2024 season, and especially since making his first start in 2025.
"I can pitch, but it just doesn't feel like myself and we're eight starts in and I haven't felt like myself in any start," Miller said. "So, I felt like it was time to do something."
Miller said he got a cortisone shot for his right elbow on Tuesday, and had already started to feel better by Wednesday afternoon. He consulted with teammates such as reliever Matt Brash and infielder Jorge Polanco about receiving a cortisone shot, and both of them provided rave reviews.
"Cortisone should hopefully take care of it," Miller said. "A couple days down and get back into throwing and let it kick in. Hopefully it gives it a little reset and I can come back feeling like myself."
Miller said the good news is that his right elbow appeared to be in a solid spot structurally based on a recent MRI. The issue was that despite all his treatment and arm care in between starts, things were not improving and tended to get worse as starts wore on.
Miller is frustrated to land on the injured list, especially considering how dominant he was in 2024 while going 12-8 with a 2.94 ERA in 31 starts covering 180 ⅓ innings. He is optimistic he can return to that form with some rest and rehab.
"If I can take care of it now and be good through the summer and through the end of the season and hopefully in the playoffs, that's what I want," Miller said. "So, that'd be really good."
In the meantime, the Mariners have a pretty significant void in their rotation, which is already without injured starters Logan Gilbert and George Kirby. Despite the losses of these three starters, manager Dan Wilson's club still finds itself in first in the American League West entering Wednesday.
Wilson said he and the coaching staff are still figuring out how exactly they'll fill Miller's absence for the upcoming 10-game road trip. He is confident, though, Seattle can manage just as it has the first quarter of the season.
"I think we'll be in good shape," Wilson said. "We've weathered the storm here with some injuries, and just have to continue to do it."