SEATTLE — Ryan Weathers came to Seattle with a big arm, a storied last name, and something to prove. He left with a result that gave the Yankees reason for optimism and a stat line with a few rough edges.
The Yankees left-hander made his debut in pinstripes Monday against the Seattle Mariners. He struck out seven, touched 98.9 mph, and limited the Mariners to one run over 4 1/3 innings. He also walked two, fell behind too many hitters, and needed reliever Fernando Cruz to escape a fifth-inning jam.
A shaky first inning before Weathers settles in
The nerves showed up early. Weathers walked Mariners leadoff man Brendan Donovan to open the bottom of the first. He worked out of it, but the command issues did not disappear.
“I think definitely nerves in the first [inning],” Weathers said. “Just a new team, just really excited to throw, and I got a little bit out of myself in the first. Bounced back well in the first and felt I threw the ball well from there on out.”
Ryan Weathers has settled in nicely as he finishes a 1-2-3 fourth inning with his seventh strikeout pic.twitter.com/6D7GZcYSFQ
Seattle capitalized in the second. With two outs, Mariners prospect Cole Young lined a broken-bat RBI single to put the home team ahead 1-0. That was the only run Weathers surrendered. He retired the next seven batters before trouble returned in the fifth.
Pitch mix, stats, and the fifth-inning that ended the night
Back-to-back singles opened the fifth, putting runners at second and third with one out. Manager Aaron Boone turned to Cruz, who struck out two straight to end the inning and protect the one-run deficit.
Weathers’ final line: 4 1/3 innings, four hits, one earned run, two walks, seven strikeouts, 77 pitches. He threw his fastball 42 percent of the time, averaging 96.6 mph and peaking at 98.9 mph. He mixed in a sinker (23 percent), sweeper (22 percent), and changeup (13 percent). The changeup was the weak link — he could not locate a consistent release point all night.
“I definitely want to be more efficient and be in the zone a little bit more,” Weathers said. “I don’t want to hang my hat on 4 1/3 innings. I want to get deeper into the ballgame, and a lot of that comes from managing the pitch count myself and not falling behind in counts.”
High upside, checkered history: the Yankees’ Weathers project
The Yankees acquired Weathers from the Miami Marlins in January for four minor leaguers. He is the son of 19-year big league veteran David Weathers, who attended Monday’s game at T-Mobile Park. Despite the pedigree and the premium velocity, Ryan has never thrown 100 innings in any professional season. A lat strain and flexor strain limited him to just 38 1/3 major league innings in 2025.
Pitching coach Matt Blake has made Weathers a development priority. The Yankees left-hander overhauled his weight room routine and between-starts throwing program under Blake’s guidance. The velocity jump followed: Weathers touched 99.8 mph in Grapefruit League play this spring, and carried that heat into his Mariners start.
Yankees staff shines, but Castillo silences New York bats
“The whole pitching staff has been doing well, starters and relievers,” Weathers said. “We’ve given up three runs as a whole entire pitching staff. That’s really good. Hopefully we can keep getting outs and keep it rolling.”
On the other side, Luis Castillo was untouchable. The Mariners right-hander entered with a 2.74 ERA in seven career starts against the Yankees. He delivered again, tossing six scoreless innings and allowing just two hits. Seattle scored a walk-off run in the ninth to seal the win.
“He’s got really good stuff,” Blake said of Weathers. “And I think he should fill it up.”
For the Yankees, Monday was not a loss to panic over. It was a debut that showed the stuff is real. If Weathers pounds the zone consistently, the Yankees rotation gains a legitimate weapon. The next question is whether he can harness it long enough to become what this Yankees club needs him to be.
