Mariners acquire outfielder Randy Arozarena in blockbuster deal with Rays
Published in Baseball
SEATTLE — In desperate need of offensive help to bolster their listless lineup, the Mariners have added one of the best bats available on the trade market.
The Mariners acquired Randy Arozarena, the slugging left fielder from the Tampa Bay Rays, late Thursday night for two minor leaguers and a player to be named later, major league sources told The Seattle Times.
The Mariners formally announced the trade later Thursday.
“Randy is a dynamic, high-energy all-around player who has excelled in the biggest moments on the biggest stages,” Mariners GM Justin Hollander said in a statement. “He’s going to be a great addition to our clubhouse and lineup.”
The 29-year-old Arozarena, the American League’s starting left fielder during the 2023 MLB All-Star Game at T-Mobile Park, is under contract for $8.1 million this season and is eligible for arbitration in each of the next two years.
The Mariners are sending to the Rays 20-year-old outfielder Aidan Smith and 22-year-old right-handed pitcher Brody Hopkins, both playing for the Mariners’ Low-A affiliate, the Modesto Nuts, plus a PTBNL.
Arozarena, the 2021 AL Rookie of the Year, was off to a dreadful start early this season, and his overall numbers are down. He has a .213 batting average with a .717 OPS with 15 homers, 36 RBIs and 16 steals in 404 plate appearances.
His 110 wRC+ this season is the lowest of his career, and well below his career average of 125 (with 100 being average).
He has, however, picked things up considerably since late May, posting a .283 average with seven homers, 13 doubles, a .904 OPS and a 161 wRC+ since then. In his last 184 plate appearance, he’s walking 12% of the time and striking out 19.6%.
The Mariners rank at or near the bottom of MLB in many offensive categories — dead last, notably, in batting average (.216) and strikeout rate (28%).
There are enough holes in the lineup — especially with center fielder Julio Rodriguez (ankle) out for a couple weeks and shortstop J.P Crawford (broken hand) out 4-6 weeks — that the Mariners could just about make any hitter fit, be it an infielder, outfielder or DH-type.
The Mariners’ priority this week was to find an outfielder, and they might not be done adding.
As poorly as things have gone for the Mariners over the past week, little changed with how Seattle’s front office is approaching Tuesday’s MLB trade deadline.
The Mariners (53-51), idle on Thursday ahead of a three-game weekend series against the Chicago White Sox, have lost five of six games coming out of the All-Star break to fall one game behind the Astros (53-49) in the American League West, with the surging Rangers (51-52) closing fast.
And yet the organization’s direction and the intention remains the same: The Mariners want to win the division, and to do that they knew they needed to upgrade their offense.
The Mariners have been active in trade talks in recent weeks, laying the groundwork for the sort of deal the front office hopes will help stabilize an underperforming lineup suddenly thinned out by injuries.
In an ideal scenario, they are able to acquire a second piece to help cover for the injuries and complement Arozarena.
©2024 The Seattle Times. Visit seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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