THE CHEAP SEATS with STEVE CAMERON: M's need Brash — and his elbow — to keep cleaning things up

Take a deep breath, Mariner fans.

And.

Hold it.

Sometime today, Matt Brash is going to toss a baseball — not very hard or very far.

He won’t spin it or hope to see any big-league movement.

No, this will be more like a dad playing catch with his 10-year-old.

So, what’s the point?

The result — the ONLY result that matters — is whether or not Brash feels pain in his elbow as he delivers these easy throws.

Or.

Will there be soreness on Wednesday, the day after Brash gives that elbow a road test?

If Brash feels OK, while he’s throwing today and for about 48 hours afterward, you probably can feel free to exhale.

You won’t be alone.

The entire Mariners organization will be watching and waiting – and hoping to exhale right along with you.

Brash’s fitness (or lack of it) means a lot for the team’s fortunes in 2024.

Seriously.

So, how can his 25-year-old reliever — not even a closer, nor a guy with lights-out statistics — make that much difference to the Mariners fate?

Seattle’s starting rotation, along with a less-than-explosive offense, suggests that the M’s will play a lot of close games.

And NOBODY can help win those games like Matt Brash.

He means that much.

I’M NOT exaggerating Brash’s importance.

Honestly.

If that elbow inflammation he felt after throwing a bullpen session two weeks ago turns into pain every time he unleashes a pitch, Brash almost surely will miss the entire season — and he’ll probably need Tommy John surgery to repair those damaged ligaments.

That would be a massive hit for the Mariners, because Brash has a special role — and so far, they haven’t found anyone else who can handle it.

The clue is that Brash appeared in 78 games last season, more than any other pitcher in Major League Baseball.

I mentioned that his stats don’t immediately scream “Hall of Fame,” but this truly is a pitcher whose job is so specific that you’d have to dig for days in a search for numbers to measure his unique effectiveness.

Brash is manager Scott Servais’ firefighter.

He gets the call when a game looks about ready to explode into flames, and the Mariners will be burned with a loss.

Imagine a situation where Seattle leads 4-3 in the sixth or seventh inning, but their opponents have suddenly pushed runners to first and third with no outs — and the meat of the batting order is due up.

For almost any other team, that mess won’t be resolved until a couple of runs (or more) have scored, and the 4-3 lead has disappeared.

The Mariners, though, have Matt Brash.

The Cleaner.

Brash has an amazing assortment of pitches, including a fastball that touches 100 and moves any which way, plus a slider that arrives at well over 90 and then just disappears.

Mike Trout described Brash’s stuff in one word: “Violent.”

It’s hard, just SO hard, to make any kind of meaningful contact against Brash in a game-changing situation.

OH, YOU can whack a pitch or draw a walk against Brash when he’s just a reliever on cruise control.

If he’s pitching innings that really don’t mean much, in other words.

Innings that won’t decide a game.

Overall, he gave up 65 hits and 29 walks in 70 2/3 innings.

But.

When Brash comes into a danger situation, when he’s The Cleaner, now you’ve got an entirely different ballgame.

Those scary innings are when The Cleaner got most of his 107 strikeouts (the most by any reliever in MLB), and when he made some terrific hitters look just plain foolish.

Each time he takes the ball with baserunners all over the place, a lead disappearing and hitters waiting to knock the Mariners out of sight, Brash somehow becomes a different human being.

No problem with the pitch clock, either.

The Cleaner wants the ball, and he’s coming after you with it.

Like.

Now.

Brash’s success getting out of these five-alarm fires has set up the Mariners for a bundle of one- and two-run wins.

The club can find another good reliever, maybe another closer — but it will be almost impossible to come up with a Cleaner.

Brash, his doctors and the club all believe that normal treatment has reduced this inflammation.

We’ll know in a couple of days, after he’s back to throwing.

I don’t need to tell you how critical this result will be.

The Mariners really, really need The Cleaner.

Email: scameron@cdapress.com

Steve Cameron’s “Cheap Seats” columns appear in The Press four times each week, normally Tuesday through Friday unless, you know, stuff happens.

Steve suggests you take his opinions in the spirit of a Jimmy Buffett song: “Breathe In, Breathe Out, Move On.”