Gilbert attendedWekiva High School inApopka, Florida. He pitched and played first base in high school. He was named his team MVP his senior season.[1] He reached 90 miles per hour on his fastball in 2014 and was the 500th best high school prospect in 2015, according to Perfect Game.[2] He was not drafted out of high school and enrolled atStetson University to playbaseball for theStetson Hatters.[3]
As a freshman in 2016, Gilbert appeared in 21 games with five starts, going 2–1 with a 2.74earned run average (ERA) and 43strikeouts in 49 innings. After his freshman season, he pitched for theBethesda Big Train in theCal Ripken Collegiate Baseball League, posting a 1.70 ERA with 28 strikeouts over26+1⁄3 innings.[4] As a sophomore in 2017, he appeared in 15 games with 12 starts, and went 10–0 with a 2.02 ERA and 107 strikeouts in 89 innings and was named theASUN Conference Pitcher of the Year.[5] After the 2017 season, he playedcollegiate summer baseball with theOrleans Firebirds of theCape Cod Baseball League, and was named a league all-star.[6][7] As a junior in 2018, he pitched to an 11–2 record and a 2.72 ERA over 16 starts and was again named the ASUN Conference Pitcher of the Year.[8][9]
Gilbert made his professional debut as the 2019 Opening Day starter of theWest Virginia Power.[16] After five starts with a 1–0 record and 1.59 ERA, he was promoted to theHigh-AModesto Nuts.[17] In 12 starts with Modesto, he went 5–3 with a 1.73 ERA, striking out 73 batters over62+1⁄3 innings.[18] He was promoted to theDouble-AArkansas Travelers in July.[19] Over nine starts with Arkansas, he pitched to a 4–2 record with a 2.88 ERA.[20]
Gilbert did not play in an official game in 2020 due to the cancellation of the minor league season because of theCOVID-19 pandemic.[21] He did pitch in an intrasquad exhibition game in Seattle in July, before the start of the MLB season.[22] He was also on the Mariners' initial 60-man roster but stayed in the alternate training site in Tacoma.[23][24]
Entering 2021, Gilbert was a consensus top 40 prospect. He started 2021 with theTacoma Rainiers, earning a win in his onlyTriple-A game.[25] On May 13, Gilbert was promoted to the major leagues and made his debut as the Mariners starting pitcher against theCleveland Indians.[26] He took the loss, allowing four runs in four innings.[27] On June 6, he earned his first career win, striking out sevenLos Angeles Angels batters and allowing one run in five innings.[28] In his rookie season, Gilbert was 6–5 in 24 starts, with a 4.68 ERA and 128 strikeouts in119+2⁄3 innings.[29]
Gilbert was named theAmerican LeaguePitcher of the Month for April 2022, in which he went 3–0 with 22 strikeouts in 20 innings.[30] On September 30, Gilbert allowed one run in eight innings against theOakland Athletics.[31] His start helped the Mariners clinch aplayoff spot for the first time since2001.
Gilbert started Game 1 of theAmerican League Division Series, allowing three runs in5+1⁄3 innings. He left with the Mariners leading, but the team lost in the bottom of the 9th inning.[32]
In his first full MLB season, Gilbert posted a 13–6 record with a 3.20 ERA in 32 starts covering185+2⁄3 innings.[29] He gave up the third-highest percentage ofline drives in the majors (28.9 percent), and balls hit against him had the second-highest averageexit velocity (91 mph) among all pitchers.[33]
Gilbert pitched his first career shutout on July 4, 2023, striking out 7San Francisco Giants and allowing 5 hits.[34][35] That game and a subsequent win over theHouston Astros earned him the AL Pitcher of the Week award.[36] He struck out a career-high 12 batters in a 2–0 win over theSan Diego Padres on August 8.[37]
Gilbert had a 13–7 record with a 3.73 ERA and 189 strikeouts in190+2⁄3 innings. His 5.25 strikeout-to-walk ratio ranked third in the American League, trailing his teammateGeorge Kirby.[38]
Gilbert continued to improve in 2024 and was selected for theAll-Star Game. However, because he was scheduled to start two days before the game and therefore unavailable to pitch, teammateAndrés Muñoz replaced him on the All-Star Game roster.[39] On September 8, Gilbert pitched his second career complete game, going only 8 innings in a 2–0 loss to theSt. Louis Cardinals.[40][41] His 10 strikeouts in that game tied his season high, also reached on August 27.[42]
Gilbert proved durable and efficient in 2024, leading the majors with208+2⁄3 innings pitched and 0.887walks and hits per inning pitched. His 220 strikeouts ranked 6th, just 8 fewer than the MLB lead. He again ranked third the AL in strikeout to walk rate, trailing Kirby.[43] He had a 9–12 record with a 3.23 ERA.[29]
Gilbert was placed on the fifteen-dayinjured list on April 26, one day after he suffered a right elbow flexor strain while pitching inMiami.[44] He missed over seven weeks, returning on June 16 against theRed Sox.[45]
Gilbert struck out a career-high thirteen batters on August 24 vs. the Athletics.[46]
Gilbert's physique contributes to his pitching success. He is tall, 6 feet 6 inches, and has large hands.[29][47] This combination has led him to have one of the longest extensions, meaning he releases the ball the furthest from the mound and the closest to home plate, limiting batters' reaction time.[48][49][50][51]
Gilbert also regularly adds new pitches to his repertoire. In 2022, he began throwing a newslider that he learned fromJacob DeGrom, which became his second most common pitch.[52][53] In 2023, he began throwing a new split changeup or splitter, which replaced his changeup and became his third most frequent pitch.[54][55][56][57][53] In 2024, he added a cutter.[58][59] He threw the cutter 10 percent of the time, reducing his four-seam fastball usage. This change made his slider his most frequent pitch for the first time in his career. Gilbert's fastball averaged at least 95 miles per hour in his first four seasons in the majors.[49] Gilbert tinkered with several of his pitches before spring training in 2025.[60]
Gilbert adopted an alter ego called "Walter" on days when he pitches. He said the name started as a joke in college and that "Walter" describes how his increased focus and competitiveness on the mound.[61][62]
Gilbert married Aviles Gilbert in November 2022.[63][64] They have a dog.[65] Gilbert is the son of Keith and Noel Gilbert and has a brother, Tyler.[1]
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