Mariners acquire slugging OF Randy Arozarena from Rays

Jul 25, 2024, 10:13 PM | Updated: Jul 26, 2024, 12:52 pm

Seattle Sports

In major need of offensive help, the Seattle Mariners took the first big swing on a bat before the MLB trade deadline.

How Mariners’ trade deadline fix could come from ’21 Braves

The Mariners acquired outfielder Randy Arozarena from the Tampa Bay Rays for minor-league prospects Aidan Smith and Brody Hopkins and a player to be named later, the team announced Thursday night.

Arozarena is expected to join the Mariners in Chicago on Saturday, Mariners insider Shannon Drayer reported.

It’s been a down year overall for the Arozarena in 2024. He’s slashing .211/.318/.394 with 19 doubles, 15 home runs, 37 RBIs, 101 strikeouts and 45 walks in 100 games. However, the slugging right-handed hitter has been trending in the right direction of late. In his past 30 games, he’s slashing .287/.378/.546 with six home runs, 15 RBIs and nine of his 16 stolen bases.

Arozarena, 29, is under club control through 2026 and has an $8.1 million salary this season.

The deal comes in the midst of what’s been an abysmal stretch for Seattle’s offense that has amplified its need for impact bats to support a stellar pitching staff. Seattle let a 10-game lead in the American League West slip away and at 53-51 trail the Houston Astros by one game.

On the season, the Mariners rank last in the league in batting average (.216) and runs scored (360), 28th in on-base percentage (.298) and slugging (.362). That includes scoring just 14 runs over their past eight games, a 1-7 stretch while scoring one run or fewer five times.

They hope Arozarena can be part of the answer for an ailing offense that’s currently missing center fielder Julio Rodríguez and shortstop J.P. Crawford. Arozarena posted a 121 OPS+ or higher in each season from 2021-23 and has a career .256/.345/.441 slash line with 114 doubles, 86 home runs, 291 RBIs and 96 stolen bases in 587 games over parts of six seasons. He earned an All-Star nod and hit a career-high 23 home runs with the Rays in 2023 and was the AL Rookie of the Year in 2021.

Smith, a 20-year-old outfielder, was a fourth-round pick in the 2023 draft and the No. 12 overall prospect in the Mariners’ farm system, according to MLB.com. In 77 games this season with Single-A Modesto, Smith batted ,284/.402/.470 with 26 doubles, one triple, nine home runs, 42 RBIs, 87 strikeouts, 52 walks and 28 stolen bases.

Hopkins, a 22-year-old right-handed starter, was a sixth-round pick last year and the 22nd-ranked Mariners prospect. In 18 starts with Modesto, Hopkins was 4-3 with a 2.90 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 95 strikeouts over 83 2/3 innings.