So what’s enabled veteran right-hander Christian Bergman to reset his career this year after being plucked off the free-agent scrap heap by the Mariners in the offseason?
"I can’t really give you a definitive answer there," he said. "I made some small mechanical adjustments that help me to stay on top of the ball. But nothing really drastic."
Bergman, 29, enters Thursday’s series finale against Minnesota with three ultra-quality starts in his last four outings. He is 3-2 with a 4.36 ERA but, take away one disastrous inning at Washington, and his ERA drops to 2.25.
Yes, that’s playing with numbers, but it underscores Bergman’s increasingly strong case to remain in the rotation once the Mariners begin to get injured starters back from the disabled list over the next month.