Specifically, and ironically given how effective it is, Gilbert’s fastball felt the least functional within his arsenal. He also unveiled the new split-changeup that’s been all the talk among his teammates, including Ray, who is also toying with it.

“Of all the guys that have played around with it, his might be most advanced or farther down the road,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said of Gilbert.
 

The calculus behind adding the split evolved late last year in brainstorming conversations about how to have a more effective offspeed pitch against lefties. Because Gilbert has such large hands and among MLB’s greatest extension down the mound, the club believes the pitch’s late-breaking movement will be even more conducive to his profile.

Gilbert always had a changeup but lacked confidence with it, throwing it just 7.9% of the time over his first two seasons, almost exclusively to lefties. His plan with the splitter, for now, is to use it ahead in counts and against lefties. He estimated that he threw five or six on Thursday.
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“I just tried to find basically a variation of a splitter that I can throw like a fastball,” Gilbert said. “And I should be able to throw it [against], hopefully, lefties and righties just as well.” (D Kramer - MLB.com - March 2, 2023)

Logan is the son of Keith and Noel Gilbert. He has one brother, Tyler, who is three years older.

Gilbert graduated from Wekiva High School in Florida. He pitched and played first base.

Logan maintained a perfect 4.0 GPA through high school.

Gilbert chose Stetson University in Florida over the Univ. of Florida, Wake Forest, Georgetown and others. He was a business systems and analytics major.

Stetson has a strong tradition of developing pitchers, including Jacob deGrom and Corey Kluber. Gilbert looks to be next in the Hatters’ pipeline after winning the Atlantic Sun Conference pitcher of the year award in the spring of 2017.

In the summer of 2017, he turned in a spectacular Cape Cod performance with Orleans. He went 1-2, 1.72 with 31 strikeouts and 4 walks in 31 innings.

June 2018: The Mariners chose Gilbert in the first round (#14 overall), out of Stetson Univ. in Deland, Florida. He signed with scout Rob Mummau.

June 16, 2018: Gilbert took the first step in his professional career, and it was a lucrative one, as the right-hander out of Stetson University finalized his contract with the Mariners. He will head to Class A Everett, though his innings will be limited this 2018 season after a heavy workload in college. The 21-year-old agreed to a $3,883,800 signing bonus, according to MLB Pipeline's Jim Callis. 

"He's been pretty much a workhorse at Stetson," Mariners amateur scouting director Scott Hunter said. "He started his first live game, an intersquad game, in January, so he's pretty much at his innings limit. We'll ease him in. If he throws a few innings this summer, it'll be icing on the cake. But it's not going to be a heavy workload whatsoever. We're about getting him ready for our [high-performance] camp in the fall."

Gilbert was at Safeco Field to watch the Mariners' 7-6 come-from-behind victory over the Red Sox in front of more than 44,000 fans, and that definitely gave him a taste of what he'll be working toward in the upcoming seasons. 

"It was crazy," Gilbert said. "It was a good game to be at, with the comeback and how they played. It was an awesome atmosphere and all that stuff. Just imagining being out there in a couple years, it was pretty cool. I'm ready to get to work. I'm excited to get to Everett and hopefully get to throw a little bit. And hopefully work my way up over the next few years."

As a junior in college, Gilbert went 11-2 with a 2.72 ERA in 16 starts, with 163 strikeouts and 25 walks in 107 innings, and he was named the Atlantic Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year. His 163 strikeouts were the most by any NCAA Division I pitcher.

Over three seasons, Gilbert posted a 23-3 record with a 2.48 ERA in 52 games, including 33 starts. The 6-foot-6 right-hander is less than two semesters shy of graduating with a degree in business systems and analytics from the private school of about 3,000 students in DeLand, Fla.

That education clearly could come into use in a Mariners organization that leans heavily on analytics. "I think it's going to be big," Gilbert said. "I didn't use it a ton in college. There wasn't a ton of data really that we had to use. But that's who I am and how my mind works. I'm an analytical type of person. So I look forward in the future to being able to utilize that in different ways. I think it'll help my game to have extra information and data to use."

Gilbert wasn't highly recruited out of high school, where he was a 4.0 student at Wekiva High School in Apopka, Fla., so he jumped at the chance to go to Stetson, which has a tradition of producing top pitchers. Corey Kluber was a fourth-round pick by the Padres in 2007 out of Stetson; and Jacob deGrom was a ninth-round selection by the Mets in 2010.

Gilbert is something of a late bloomer, not fully committing to pitching until his final years of high school. But once that decision came, his dad built a mound in the family's backyard in Florida and the work hasn't stopped since.

"Most of the time, kids have their own batting cages," Hunter said, "but that might have been my first with their own mound. I know one thing we're definitely getting is the work ethic and upside and passion for the game. It's amazing what he's done on his own over the course of his career. And where he wants to get to, it's refreshing as an organization that we're getting that kind of human, too." (G Johns - MLB.com - June 16, 2018)

In 2019, the Baseball America Prospect Handbook rated Gilbert as the 3rd-best prospect in the Mariners' organization. He was at #4 a year later early in 2020. But he moved back to #3 in the winter before 2021 spring training.

2019 Season: Gilbert received the Mariners top Minor League honor receiving the Jamie Moyer Pitcher of the Year Award. Gilbert, ranked as Seattle’s No. 2 prospect, also jumped from West Virginia to Modesto before finishing the season with Arkansas.

The 22-year-old went a combined 10-5 with a 2.13 ERA in 135 innings over 26 starts in his first season in pro ball after being drafted in the first round by Seattle in 2018. In all, Gilbert produced a .198 opponent average and 0.95 WHIP in 135 innings this season, both of which were nearly identical to his Texas League numbers.

Gilbert led NCAA Division I and set a Stetson record with 163 strikeouts in 112 innings en route to winning his second straight Atlantic Sun Conference Pitcher of the Year award in 2018. But his velocity dipped while he was battling mononucleosis that spring.

He sat out the summer after signing with the Mariners, then returned with a vengeance. Seattle named Gilbert its 2019 Minor League Pitcher of the Year after he posted a 2.13 ERA, .198 opponents' average and 165 strikeouts in 135 innings while moving from Class A to Double-A at age 22.

Q&A WITH MLB IN 2020

MLB.com: Coming out of high school, did you have a lot of interest from pro teams or was it a pretty easy decision to go to Stetson? Were you heavily recruited?

Gilbert: I wouldn't say so. I guess there were a couple teams in high school, namely the Blue Jays, that was the only interest I had except for a couple of others. Even college recruiting wasn't too heavy, so it was a pretty easy decision to go to college because there wasn't a chance to get at least enough money or a high enough round to make it worth it out of high school.

MLB.com: Stetson has become known as a pitching factory with a pair of two-time Cy Young winners in Corey Kluber and Jacob deGrom. When you become part of that program, do those guys ever come back? Have you interacted with them at all or run into them in pro ball?

Gilbert: I haven't talked to them, met them or anything like that. They didn't really come back to Stetson too much. Like you said, that's I guess the tradition now with the pitchers coming out of Stetson. I've heard a lot about them from the guys who are coaches and through my agency [Jet Sports Management], which has Kluber as well. 

MLB.com: You had a great Cape Cod League and came into your Draft year projected to be one of the first pitchers taken, and then you wound up coming down with mono and your velocity decreased. When did you first realize you were sick? Did you understand why your velocity was down at the time or was that more baffling?

Gilbert: It was kind of weird, especially coming out of a good summer like that where my velocity was up. I go into the season, and you can have mono for a while before you realize you have it. So I honestly don't think that's what affected me. It was in my body, but I wasn't feeling symptoms or anything like that during the season. I think my arm was maybe kind of dead feeling, just tired, and my mechanics changed a little bit, which I think had more to do with it than the mono symptoms.

MLB.com: How frustrating was it to not have the same stuff you had previously and over the summer? When did you feel like you were back to full strength?

Gilbert: It was weird. I was doing everything I needed to during the season numbers-wise, but I knew the velocity just wasn't there. You need to get hitters out, but you need to be throwing some high velocity and good breaking pitches and all that stuff, and the ball wasn't coming out as fast and it affected everything else. I think once I got through mono and rested that summer, I didn't play my first season, once my arm got going again I felt really good.

MLB.com: So you didn't feel like you were back to full strength until the next year?

Gilbert: I felt fine during my junior season because I had it in my system, but I wasn't feeling the symptoms. I felt full strength during the season and then right after the Draft is when it hit me really hard. All of a sudden, I felt everything that had been in my system, I guess. After a couple months, I'd say I was back to full strength.

MLB.com: What were your expectations going into the Draft? Your stock was pretty volatile that spring because your velocity was down. You had been talked about as a potential top-five pick and at one point there was thought that you might go in the 20s.

Gilbert: It was kind of weird just playing the season and having all that in the background. I knew I was dropping a little bit and hurting myself but the last couple of starts, my velocity ticked back a little bit and I was just trying to figure something out to get the last little bit out of me and crawl back up there. I was playing fine, but I also wanted to help myself out for the future.

MLB.com: How hard was it after you get drafted and sign to not pitch that first summer while you were getting over mono? Were you hoping to pitch and the Mariners said, no, we're going to take it slow?

Gilbert: It was weird, especially when I'd come down there and then I don't actually get to go out and do everything I wanted to do when I became a professional. I think they wanted me to wait for good reason and try to be healthy, but I wanted to get out there as soon as possible.

MLB.com: After having gone through all that, how gratifying was your first pro season and the success you had? Did you have specific goals for yourself going into 2019 and did you accomplish most everything you wanted last year?

Gilbert: I think so. It wasn't as much numbers-wise or stats or anything like that, but just the player and stuff that I have. I wanted that to not only come back but continue to develop on it. I felt like I did that with my slider, with my secondary pitches. More than anything, it was just about developing and trying to take those next steps and becoming the best pitcher I can be.

MLB.com: How would you break down your repertoire? If you were a scout, how would you describe your individual pitches?

Gilbert: I think I have a good fastball. I pitch off it a lot and get extension with the fastball, so it gets on hitters pretty quick. That's how I try to get ahead, then from there I have a couple of different breaking balls. I have a big, kind of 12-6 slow curveball and then a slider around the low 80s. I'll usually use that when I'm ahead in the count. That's where I get a majority of my strikeouts, with my slider. That was a big focus we were trying to hit on last year.

Then I have a changeup, fourth pitch I can go to when I feel like they're on something else, a different pitch. Against lefties, soft contact, where I'm not necessarily going for the swing and miss, I can go to changeup if I want to.

MLB.com: What do you need to work on? What's on your to-do list when this season resumes?

Gilbert: I think the biggest part of this season is probably the locations that I'm throwing to. Not necessarily throwing strikes or getting ahead of hitters. I talked about this with our pitching coordinator about trying to find where my pitches actually play the best in the strike zone. Instead of just trying to get nastier movement, we're trying to find the location that's going to complement the movement that I already have on my pitches.

MLB.com: How would you describe the difference between big league camp last year, when you got into one game and gave up five runs in two-thirds of an inning, which in some ways was your pro debut, and this year, where you pitched four innings and gave up only one baserunner?

Gilbert: It was crazy, it was way different. When you hear the numbers, it tells the whole story. I'd say I was a lot more comfortable out there, that was the biggest difference. The first time out there, pro debut and all that stuff, I was a little jittery and the ball was kind of getting away from me. I got out there this year after getting a full season under my belt and I just felt comfortable, like I belonged out there. More than anything, it was the confidence and the pitches and the stuff came from that.  (Jim Callis - Mar. 24, 2020)

On the days when it’s not Logan Gilbert’s turn in the starting rotation, he is, essentially, the Mariners’ version of a gentle giant.

He smiles a lot, has time to answer questions from reporters and takes, and gives, good-natured ribbing from his teammates and coaches.

But when it’s Gilbert’s turn to take the ball, his alter ego — his name is Walter — takes over. And Walter is all business, straight-faced and fierce.

That was again the case Tuesday as Gilbert found a way to tame the White Sox despite not having his best stuff. Seattle improved to 77-58 with a 3-0 victory before a crowd of 17,958 at T-Mobile Park.

This is what not having your best stuff looks like?

“It’s crazy to say that. His stuff was really good, but I just thought his timing was off tonight and we saw more noncompetitive pitches that we see from Logan on any normal night … and he knew it,” Mariners manager Scott Servais said.

Try telling that to Walter, though.

With the Mariners holding a 1-0 lead in the sixth inning, and with the tying run at third base, Gilbert reached back and found another gear to all but finish off the White Sox. He blew 99 mph heaters past Gavin Sheets and AJ Pollock to end the inning. Enter Walter.

After Gilbert got Pollock to chase a fastball up and out of the strike zone, he let out a primal screen and pumped his arms on the way back to the dugout, a show of emotion he hasn’t displayed at this level before.

Big moment, big finish. Gilbert delivered.
“I just let it go,” Gilbert said. “Just a big moment and trying to make a big pitch, and when I did it just kind of came out and I just kind of blacked out.”
“He’s got tremendous (stuff), and to be able to compete for six (innings) without his ‘A’ stuff says a lot about him,” Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh said. 

All Raleigh wanted to talk about afterward was how his friend and roommate showed a rare sign of emotion on the mound.

“That’s probably the most emotion I’ve ever seen from him,” Raleigh said of Gilbert, smiling. “The reaction was awesome. That was just really cool to see.” (Brock-TheAthletic-Sept 7, 2022)

Gilbert has a 92-97 mph FASTBALL with late riding life that he gets great extension out front with: it's a 60 grade. He also has a 75-78 mph sharp 11-to-5 spike-CURVEBALL with two plane action and depth; and he has outstanding feel for it. It has a high spin rate for a 55 grade.

He also has an 81-83 mph SLIDER—a 55. His 84-86 mph CHANGEUP improved notably in 2020, and it is now a 60 grade. 

Logan is a good athlete who pounds the strike zone with above-average control. He is a tall, long-limbed righthander who dominates with his fastball. Everything Gilbert throws plays up with his advanced pitch-ability and above-average control despite a long arm action. (Bill Mitchell - Baseball America Prospect Handbook - Spring, 2021)

Logan repeats his loose, simple delivery, easily, filling up the strike zone. He has impressive control. He generates easy righthanded heat.

Gilbert profiles as a workhorse. His athleticism allows him to repeat a free and easy high-three-quarters delivery.

Logan exhibits poise and a feel for the pitching craft. He has a solid mound presence and maintains his composure.

2019 Season: While the rebuilding Mariners have an interesting group of promising pitching prospects knocking on the door, 22-year-old Logan Gilbert is regarded as the one with the highest upside by most scouts. The 6-foot-6 right-hander was the Mariners’ Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2019. That season, he went 10-5 with a 2.13 ERA in 26 starts while jumping two levels to Double-A Arkansas by season’s end.

The 2018 first-round Draft pick features a mid-90s fastball that he offsets with a capable slider, curve and changeup mix, and his lanky frame allows for an unusually long stride down the mound that makes his fastball play up even more. Gilbert, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Mariners’ No. 3 prospect, is expected to open the season back at Double-A but was having an impressive Spring Training before camp was shut down. He could be a rotation contributor at some point in 2020. (G Johns - MLB.com - April 2, 2020)

April 2020 Scout's Take: "He’s a real interesting guy. He’s got pitch characteristics that explain what he does. It’s all his extension. His 93-94 mph plays right at the top of the scale. Guys see the velocity at 93-94 and think they got it, but he’s only throwing the ball 52 feet, so it’s a little quicker than that. He doesn’t have a lot of reps and you don’t want to take the risk of putting him in a tough learning environment in the majors too soon, but I like his future.”

July 18, 2021:  As if his last outing against the Yankees wasn't impressive enough, when he set a career high with 8 strikeouts, Logan followed it up with 9 more against the 24 Angels he faced, including six of his first seven.

2021 Season: The 24-year-old Mariners’ top starting pitching prospect got his call-up on May 13, 2021. Seattle selected Logan Gilbert 14th overall in the 2018 MLB Amateur Draft. He was brought along slowly through the M’s farm system, and that continued when he reached the big club.

His first half was good, not great, with a 3-2 record and 3.51 ERA in 10 starts. His second half didn’t go as smoothly, and Gilbert was hit hard at times despite no difference in velocity.

One of the key stats to look at when analyzing control is WHIP. The combination of walks and hits and can demonstrate control in the zone as well. In the second half, Gilbert left too many pitches in the red zone. Hitters crushed those baseballs leading to some early departures. His walks, however, remained the same in both halves.

At times the rookie looked utterly dominant and finished with 128 strikeouts (second on the team) in only 119.1 innings.  But throughout the season, he couldn’t get deep into games. In the beginning, it was because of pitch limits placed on him.

Once they raised his ceiling, Gilbert struggled facing batters his third time through the order. In those at-bats, he had a .866 OPS against him. In fact, the sixth inning was his worst, and he would rarely get out of it unscathed.

He’s young and clearly has the tools and pitches to be successful at the Major League level. But it’s too early to figure out what grade to give him. After a full season, we’ll see where he falls.  (Joe Swenson - Nov. 5, 2021)

Gilbert’s changeup grip: “I am throwing it harder, and I think a lot of that is me trying to throw it more like a fastball, and having it play off of that. As much as possible, I’m trying to think fastball, just with a different grip. There’s the arm slot, too. I’m trying to have everything come out of that same window, that same tunnel. Hopefully the hitter will pick it up a split second later, because they think they’re seeing a fastball. Last year, the action was really good on it, but right away you could tell it wasn’t a fastball.

“I’m not necessarily looking for [velocity separation]. The movement is primarily what I’m going for. You put a little natural tilt on the ball, depending on where it comes out. I’m trying to ride the fastball from up top, so if I throw my changeup in the same slot, it will naturally look like it’s headed down, even though the movement also has the horizontal axis. It will get the depth and fade just from that.

“It does [have more horizontal than the old changeup], although I want to see that action down. I don’t want to miss arm side. That’s how I know I’m probably not throwing it like a fastball. But when I throw it right, I do still get the side spin that gets the horizontal. I’m also on the first base side, so it will naturally carry it a little bit that way. But for the most part, I just try to start it in my lane and have it move under the zone.

“As for the velo separation, some of the best starters are big fastball pitchers who have fast changeups as well. It works for them, because they’re selling it well. Sandy Alcantara, Jacob deGrom, Zack Wheeler … I learn from watching those guys. Velo separation is important, but I think as long as I’m selling it, it will do the job.

“My changeup usage is around 8%, and I think I’d like to get it between 10% and 15%. I really like what it does, and it’s definitely helped me out, especially against lefties. But it’s a little bit tough, because I want to throw all of my pitches more. To throw one pitch more, I obviously have to throw something else less. I really like my fastball, so I don’t want to just take away a bunch of fastballs. And I also like my curve and slider. Something would have to give a little bit.

“I guess I’d have to pick one, but I think it will sort itself out as I keep going. Swings will tell me a lot. That’s something I’ve learned since being up here: the hitters give you a ton of information. They’ll tell you what’s working, what’s not, and what you should maybe throw more. As I continue to progress, I’ll just figure it out naturally.”  (David Laurila - May 31, 2022)

2022 Season: Logan Gilbert gets an A- for his 2022 Mariners season.

I don’t think there is any doubt that the Mariners pitching staff was the highlight of the season. George Kirby was a monster as a rookie, dotting people up and doing exactly what was needed out of a rookie pitcher.  Luis Castillo was a STUD, and Robbie Ray was actually pretty good (in the regular season).

Gilbert came into the year with a couple of questions surrounding him. Could he go deeper into ballgames and hold up in his first full season? Would he show an improvement on his stuff? That question was answered early, as he started showing off a slider that went from 83.4 mph to 86.9 mph, while his fastball went up a bit to 96.1 from 95.3.

It lead to a much lower SLG against him this year, down to .390 from .425. He was able to about 6 innings per start, tallying 185.2 innings in 32 starts with a 3.20 ERA, not missing a single one all year. He ended up with a 3.2 WAR, pretty solid for a young pitcher in his first full season. His ERA+ showed a solid season as well at 116, and his FIP was a very strong 3.46.

It wasn’t all great for Gilbert, though. He had one of the worst hard-hit rates in baseball, with an average exit velo of 91.0 mph, well above the league average of 88.4. It was an odd combination, as he didn’t get hit often, but when he did, it was hard. His BABIP against was at league average, he gave up less than an HR per game, but guys still hit him hard.  ( Christopher O'Day - Oct. 22, 2022)

June 2018: Gilbert had his pro debut pushed back after he contracted mono. 

He also had surgery on a toe.