SEATTLE, Wash. – Former Zags pitcher Wyatt Mills got the long-awaited call-up from the Seattle Mariners' alternate site at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday, and within six hours he was on the mound for the first time as a big leaguer, throwing a flawless 1-2-3 eighth inning in Seattle's 10-5 loss to the Angels.
 
Saturday's appearance was the 26-year-old Mills' first time against an opposing team in a live game since Aug. 31, 2019, but he made it look easy — retiring three consecutive batters with 14 pitches, 8 of them strikes — to finish as the only Seattle pitcher that didn't give up a hit that day.
 
Mills, a Spokane native and former All-WCC pitcher at GU who is second in program history in total saves (21), was selected by the M's in the third round of the 2017 MLB Draft and is ranked as the organization's No. 22 prospect on MLB Pipeline. 
 
He's been on the cusp of major league mound time for a while: he made the Mariners' 40-man roster during the offseason after posting impressive strikeout numbers in AA ball, and stints with the fall developmental league in Arizona and USA Baseball gave him time to show what he could do with his two-pitch combo.
 
"I know that the stuff that I provide — sinker-slider — and it's hard ... any team would like that," Mills said. "And I know that I've got to believe in that for the rest of my career.
 
"And a lot of it is just belief in myself on the mental side of the game, being able to come out and be me consistently. And it took a lot of conversation with coaches, mental strength coaches, strength coaches, just to get me on the right track. Really, just to trust in myself and believe in it."

In his four years at Gonzaga, Mills worked his way into one of the best closers in the nation. In his final season, the Spokane, Wash. native posted a 1.79 ERA and a minuscule 58/4 strikeout/walk ratio while saving 12 games for the Bulldogs, the second-most in a single season in program history.