Abbott will head down to Triple-A Charlotte. The 28-year-old righty was released from the Mariners last week after he didn’t make the 40-man roster. He’ll continue develop at the minor league level where he had a career 5.51 ERA in 41 career starts at the Triple-A level.

Abbott failed to land a spot on Seattle’s season-opening roster after signing a minor league contract back in January. The 28-year-old righty will head to free agency in search of a new opportunity.

As is often the case at this time of year, there were no real surprises among this first group of cuts for the Mariners. Abbott appeared in just one Cactus League game, issuing three walks and giving up two earned runs in his lone inning of work. He’ll begin the season as extra bullpen depth for the M’s at Triple-A Tacoma.

Abbott’s versatility as either a starter or reliever is appealing to the Mariners, who figure to carry at least one swingman on their season-opening roster. The 28-year-old righty striggled this past season to an inflated 6.64 ERA, 1.70 WHIP and 40/19 K/BB ratio across 39 1/3 innings (22 appearances) for the Nationals. He’ll have a chance to compete for a spot in Seattle’s bullpen in spring training, but won’t necessarily make an impact for fantasy purposes.