The Mariners have signed 26-year old righty reliever Steven Shell after he cleared waivers from the Washington Nationals. Shell pitched in 4 games (0 starts) for the Nationals this season and he is 0-0 with a 5.40 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. Shell has now pitched in 43 games (0 starts) in his major league career and he is 2-2 with 2 saves, a 2.45 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. Look for Shell to help the bullpen soon as he’s a good major league pitcher. This was a outstanding move for the Mariners.

The Mariners have placed closer Brandon Morrow on the 15-day disabled list with right biceps tendinitis. Morrow has pitched in 7 games for the Mariners this season and he is 0-1 with 5 saves, a 4.05 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Veteran David Aardsma will replace Morrow as the closer while he is out. Aardsma has pitched in 9 games so far this season for the Mariners and he is 0-0 with 3 saves, a 1.93 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP. He has the stuff to succeed as a stopper as long as he can throw strikes. The Mariners have recalled 34-year old righty reliever Denny Stark to replace Morrow in the bullpen. Stark hasn’t pitched in the majors since the 2004 season with the Colorado Rockies and he has had Tommy John Surgery twice in his career. Stark pitched in 7 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball this season and he is 0-0 with 1 save, a 3.97 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Stark has pitched in 62 games (42 starts) in his major league career to date and he is 15-13 with 5 saves, a 5.78 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP.

The Mariners have designated veteran catcher Jamie Burke for assignment. Burke played in 4 games for the Mariners this season and he was 1 for 13 (.077 avg, .220 OPS). Burke was made expendable for two reasons…..1) The Mariners activated Kenji Johjima from the D.L. and 2) Rookie catcher Rob Johnson did a good job while Johjima was out of action. Johjima will get his starting job back. He has played in 8 games for the Mariners this season and he is 7 for 28 (.250 avg, .500 OPS) with 2 runs scored and 4 RBIs. Rob Johnson has played in 13 games this season for the Mariners and he is 11 for 43 (.256 avg, .639 OPS) with 4 runs scored and 8 RBIs. The Mariners shouldn’t miss Burke too much as they are in good hands with Johjima and Johnson going forward.