A tale of two Logans: Logan Evans debuts as Logan Gilbert goes on the IL

From one “Big Log” to another

During spring training, the two would pass each other in the hallway outside the big-league clubhouse.

“Big Log” one would say, in way of greeting.” (Prounounced with a long o like “loag,” not “log”)

“Biiiiiiig Loooooog,” would come the reply.

Evans says he thinks he started the nickname game, because the 6’4” Evans has always been called “Big Log”: “But then I’m looking up at him, like, finally, there’s another Logan that’s bigger than me. So I hit him with the ‘Big Log.’”

Now both the Logans are reunited again, albeit briefly, as the OG Big Log, Logan Gilbert, is headed for an IL stint after imaging revealed a Grade 1 flexor tendon strain. That’s why the other Logan is here, capping a meteoric rise through the minors that landed Evans in the same clubhouse as Gilbert—first this spring, and now at the big-league level, where his locker is just a few down from Gilbert’s.

Beyond the shared name, Gilbert has been a mentor for Evans since the spring, a full-circle moment that came when the two saw each other for the first time in the clubhouse at T-Mobile Park on Saturday. Gilbert, the veteran, had some advice for the rookie.

“He came up to me, dabbed me up, gave me a big hug, and just said, you get one of these, so make the most of it,” said Evans. “[Told me to] take everything in, but also realize it’s the same game. There’s just a little bit brighter lights, more fans, but nothing else changes.”

“He’s a genius about pitching, obviously, you see that with the results, but like watching him every day in spring go about his business and the way he attacks his routine is awesome,” enthused Evans about Gilbert. “I got to pick his brain.”

The Mariners gave Evans a long look this spring, holding him in big-league camp until the final few days of spring training, letting him test out his stuff against big-league and more advanced hitters. Over the spring, he showcased several of the changes he’s made while in the Mariners system: adapting his shorter slider into two different pitches, a sweeper and curveball, and a cutter that he’s tinkered with and brought into the regular season.

But for Evans, the biggest adjustment between being a “thrower,” as he said he was when he came to pro ball, and a “pitcher” has been a matter of preparation.

“[Before] I was just getting a pitch call and just going; I didn’t have any plan of attack. Now it’s buying into the scouting report I have on each individual hitter I face, throwing those first pitch strikes and winning the 1-1 counts, and then when I get into those advantage counts, making my pitch and knowing what those hitters struggle with. Like the scouting reports will tell you if they don’t like a sweeper or fastball or any of that.”

“He understands what the art of pitching is about,” said Dan Wilson, “and he’s got a lot of weapons with which to do that, to go along with the philosophy that we have here in terms of getting ahead, controlling the at-bat, winning the 1-1s. I think it fits right into him and what he does and does so well.”

Evans might model his preparation off Gilbert’s now, but the two Logans had vastly different paths to the bigs. Gilbert, the first-round pick taken fourteenth overall in 2018, headlined a wave of splashy pitching prospects in Seattle. Evans was a quieter 12th-round pick in 2023 who we initially saw as a fast-moving reliever thanks to elite spin rates and a sassy little rock-the-baby K strut.

“Being a Day Three pick, I just kind of came in with the opportunity, trying to make the most of it,” said Evans. “And then I went to Modesto, got to win a championship. Saw some success, bought into everything that the Mariners were telling me to do. And then from there I went straight to Arkansas and we got to win another championship. Got to pitch a little bit in Tacoma this year, and now pitching for the big-league team, and hopefully get a third championship in a row.”

As he is on the mound, in person Evans is a quick thinker, confident without being arrogant. He’s witty, a quote machine: when asked what the difference between lower-level and Triple-A hitters is he said “they got more show time, maybe a little bit bigger. But hitters are still bad if you get them into advantage counts.” He bemoaned the fact that he always plays as the Mariners when playing MLB The Show but makes himself a switch-hitting shortstop so he has to hit in T-Mobile.

Unlike Gilbert, who did the traditional first-round-pick photoshoot after being drafted, Evans hadn’t set foot in T-Mobile Park other than virtually before getting the call. (“The graphics look a little better in person,” he deadpanned from the dugout during his press conference.)

“I didn’t really want to experience it any other way. I wanted it to be my day when I came here for the first time. Maybe that’s a little selfish,” he laughed.

Selfish or not, Big Log’s day is here.