Smyly fired two scoreless innings in Wednesday's 7-4 Cactus League victory over the Indians, surrendering only one walk and notching a pair of strikeouts.
The offseason acquisition from the Rays impressed his first time out and looked sharp throughout while firing 31 pitches overall. It was naturally an encouraging start for Smyly, who racked up a career-high 12 losses and 4.88 ERA in Tampa in 2016. The Mariners have high hopes for Smyly recapturing his previous form as one of two southpaws (along with James Paxton) in the projected 2017 starting rotation. "He was very crisp," manager Scott Servais said. "He went right after them, good breaking ball. It was nice to see. First time out in a Mariners uniform, he looked very comfortable."