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Former BYU pitcher Michael Rucker is back in Major League Baseball

For the first time since 2023, Michael Rucker is back on an MLB roster.

The former BYU pitcher and Auburn, Washington, native has been called up by his hometown Seattle Mariners, the team announced Thursday.

Rucker is one of three BYU products currently in the big leagues, joining his former Cougars teammate Daniel Schneemann of the Cleveland Guardians and Athletics reliever Justin Sterner.

When Rucker makes his Mariners debut, it will mark the first season since 2017 in which three different BYU players all appeared in at least one MLB contest.

In 96 appearances for the Chicago Cubs between 2021-23, Rucker went 5-2 with a 4.96 earned run average and 120 strikeouts. His best campaign came in 2022, when he won three games and pitched to a 3.95 ERA.

Prior to his MLB promotion, Rucker sported a 1.59 ERA across 22 2/3 innings in Triple-A this season.

Rucker was excellent in two years at BYU after transferring from Gonzaga, posting a 16-2 record, 2.92 ERA and 150 strikeouts in 39 games (22 starts).

After earning First Team All-West Coast Conference honors in 2016, he was selected by the Cubs in the 11th round of that year’s draft, becoming the 22nd player ever drafted out of BYU.

Rucker will now join a Mariners pitching staff that currently boasts the fifth-best ERA in baseball as Seattle looks to capture its second consecutive American League West division crown.