Smyly, who is penciled in as the Mariners' fourth starter, is looking to put an inconsistent 2016 season behind him, Greg Johns of MLB.com reports.
The 27-year-old southpaw's Jekyll-and-Hyde 2016 campaign makes his 2017 prospects somewhat uncertain heading into the spring, but the Mariners will be counting on getting the version of Smyly that has shown flashes of brilliance in the past. Smyly's second and final full season in a Rays uniform was a tale of two halves, with the lefty tallying only a pair of victories against 10 losses and a 5.47 ERA prior to the All-Star break, and a 5-2 record and 4.08 ERA after the Midsummer Classic. He amassed a career-high 12 losses and 4.88 ERA while also giving up a whopping 32 homers, easily a career-worst figure. However, the Mariners saw enough potential in Smyly's past body of work, including the positive stretches of his 2016 campaign, to make the move to acquire him, with general manager Jerry Dipoto noting that the team's "greatly improved outfield defense" and the lefty's profile as fly-ball pitcher with above-average control makes him a potentially ideal fit. With respect to last season's issues, Smyly identified problems with his trademark curve as the primary culprit for his struggles, an issue that he doesn't plan on allowing to resurface on his new club. "I have to mix speeds," he said. "I'm constantly trying to get the hitter guessing. I know I can throw strikes. I know I'm not going to walk guys. But it's just commanding the ball inside the strike zone, throwing quality strikes and changing speeds and keeping the hitter off-balance, that's the biggest key to pitching."