The Mariners have officially struck a deal to acquire outfielder Leonys Martin and righty Anthony Bass from the Rangers in exchange for right-handed reliever Tom Wilhelmsen, outfielder James Jones, and a player to be named later.
Martin had fallen out of favor in Texas after a rough 2015 season. The 27-year-old is an outstanding defender and major threat on the bases, but he slashed just .219/.264/.313 over 310 plate appearances. In the meantime, the Rangers found a Rule 5 gem in Delino DeShields Jr. While he and Martin made for a natural platoon pairing, there seemed to be some discord between Martin and the club after he was left off of the playoff roster and then refused to participate in Instructional League as a way to stay ready in case he was needed.
New Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto said that he sees Martin as a victim of bad luck — citing his .270 BABIP last year, which fell well below his .313 career mark — who ought to turn things around. (Via Ryan Divish of the Seattle Times, on Twitter.) It appears that Martin will go right to the top of the depth chart in Seattle, though Dipoto also told reporters tonight that another outfield addition could still be in the offing. It’s a good bet, though, that the team won’t now chase top free agents such as Dexter Fowler or Denard Span.
In addition to adding three years of control over Martin, Seattle will pick up three arb seasons of Bass. He represents a useful arm who will help maintain the Mariners’ bullpen depth. The 28-year-old comes with three years of arb control. He contributed only a 4.50 ERA last year, with 6.3 K/9 against 2.8 BB/9, but tossed 64 innings and drew more positive reviews from advanced metrics. While Wilhelmsen had represented a late-inning option, Dipoto had already gone out and added veteran set-up man Joaquin Benoit. But the club’s pen struggled last year, and adding Bass in this trade helps to guard against any scrambling for innings.
Texas, meanwhile, will add two seasons of Wilhelmsen, a 31-year-old righty who possesses a mid-90s heater. The veteran has thrown over 300 frames in the majors, working to a 2.97 overall ERA with 8.5 K/9 against 4.0 BB/9. He was right in that range in 2015, but continued a trend of posting earned run results that are much better than ERA estimators would expect. (For his career, Wilhelmsen has a 3.39 FIP, 3.94 xFIP, and 3.67 SIERA.)
Wilhelmsen figures to bolster a Rangers’ late-inning relief corps that has its share of questions. While pitchers like Shawn Tolleson, Keone Kela, Jake Diekman, and Sam Dyson all turned in quality seasons, there are enough question marks with that group that another good arm made sense.
And Jones is more than a throw-in, as he could ultimately be a cheaper and more controllable version of Martin. The left-handed hitter has not shown much of anything in his 400+ major league plate appearances, but has generally been rather productive at the plate in the high minors. Notably, last year, he not only put up a solid .294/.373/.423 batting line at Triple-A, but struck out only 68 times (against 53 walks) in his 501 trips to the plate — representing a huge improvement over prior seasons. While he may not possess an elite glove, Jones has swiped 28 bags in his limited MLB action. He could make for a useful pairing with DeShields up the middle.
While this deal shifts the assets between the clubs, it’s worth noting that it won’t have much impact on their respective payroll situations. MLBTR projects Martin to earn $3.75MM next year, matching his salary from 2015 — he would have only been projected at $1.6MM without that starting point — while Bass lands at $1.1MM. Meanwhile, the arb model pegs Wilhelmsen at an even $3MM.
Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reported the deal on Twitter. T.R. Sullivan first reported (on Twitter) the inclusion of Jones.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
I dunno how much $$ the Mariners have to spend, but if this is their solution to their gaping hole in CF, they’re obviously not going anywhere.
Spending upwards of $200 mil on a premium outfielder after Cano and Cruz’s contracts, and the Seager extension just aren’t in the cards this year.
We have committed around $80M and have around $125M. We have enough to improve but not enough to ignore the price tags
This is not a solution, but this is definitely part of DiPoto’s plan to get more athletic. Who wouldn’t give Martin a second shot at CF with as much hype as he had before? And Wilhelmson/Jones are no long term fixtures, just parts.
So long bartender…Martin should do well patrolling Safeco
Just what the Mariners need, another weak hitting outfielder. This is a definite step down from Austin Jackson and now they’ve lost the Bartender to boot.
That is Jerry Dipoto for you. He wanted to take credit when the player he signed worked out with the Angels. But wanted to blame Arte Moreno and Mike Scioscia when they didn’t work out. He told Scioscia in May that he wasn’t using Matt Joyce in the right way. That was his excuse for not making a trade and getting a good hitter to play left field.
I’m not sure what happened in the Matt Joyce scenario, but Arte Moreno was the one who kept signing big bats like Pujols and Hamilton which forced GM Jerry DiPoto into the situation of trading prospects and veterans for pitching prospects practically every season.
I honestly fail to see how this a downgrade from Austin Jackson and whoever they had playing out in CF. Martin had one bad year that was mostly due to bad luck (.270 BABIP). The previous two years he was a below average hitter who was one of the best defensive CF in the game. And, they only gave up a decent reliever and a AAAA RF to get him. In my biased opinion, this is a great trade for the Mariners
Absolutely agree if you look at martins defensive stats last 3 years his defensive WAR and range factor and assists from outfield are all in like top 10 and almost all in top 5 he is legit and will be a HUGE upgrade over last years really since guti was healthy like 5 years ago lol go Mariners !
I wouldn’t call James Jones a AAAA player; it doesn’t fit. His AAA stats aren’t eye-popping, and his MLB stats aren’t horrible given his tenure.
Steamer600, which assumes 600 plate appearances for each hitter, projects a 2016 fWAR of 1.4 each for Leonys Martin and Austin Jackson:
fangraphs.com/projections.aspx?pos=cf&stats=b…
MLB Trade Rumors projects a 2016 salary of $1.6 million in his first arbitration season for Martin and predicts a one-year, $12 million contract for Jackson.
my thoughts too, Austin Jackson is a quality CF, should have kept him and sent Jones and another to the Cubs last season instead…hmmmm
Jackson was doing nothing on the Mariners. His point is to say that Martin and Jackson are comparable players but Martin projects to make close to $10 million less.
I think this is a really good pick up for the mariners. A CF who can go get em in the spacious safeco park. in 2013,2014 he comebined for around a 8 WAR, 4 WAR a year average. Last year only 1.1 WAR but I expect him to bounce back. Hes not a power hitter which should translate well to safeco. The guy also has 30 SB speed which is nice.
Also, Edgar as hitting coach should really get him back on track offensively
Magadan may have been a poor hitting coach, but I’m not so sure he was the reason for Martin’s struggles. After watching Martin for 5 years, it’s painfully clear that when he goes up to the plate, he’s looking to pull the ball and hit a homerun. He managed to get by doing just that in 2013 and 2014, but it finally caught up with him in 2015. The Rangers said on a couple occasions that they wanted him to hit the ball to the opposite field but he could never make the necessary adjustment. He may just be uncoachable.
What makes you think that? Outside of HR’s, the 2015 SEA bats ranked in the lower half of offensive production. He has a team of Martin’s already that he has not been able to help much.
Totally agree. While Wilhelmsen is going to be missed in our pen, we get a great defensive center fielder who fits our park perfectly.
I’d take this trade any day of the week. And Anthony Bass should be an adequate replacement for Wilhelmsen,
I also like Carson Smith and Joaquin Benoit holding down the 8th and 9th innings for the M’s
Think offensively he’s too similar to Marte, except worse maybe
I think what is being overlooked is his speed on the base path. With the core we have, and Martin hitting singles-turn-doubles via the SB, Seager is going to have a year hitting in the 2 hole. RBI singles for Seager are going to be a commodity
I’m a Mariners fan, and from what looks like the implication of your comment, you would have Martin hitting in front of Seager, which means he’d be leading off. That would infuriate me as a fan. A leadoff hitter shouldn’t have a career high .325 OBP. That’s Zduriencik style roster building, and its the reason we’re in the longest playoff drought in baseball. Our last few years have seen historically bad offense, which saw us posting some of the worst team OBPs in the DH-era. Martin is a great fit for this club, but he wasn’t brought in to spark the offense at the top of the order. He’s a 9 hitter, not a 1.
I agree with dshires4, Marte will bat leadoff, but just because Martin might bat 9th, doesn’t mean that will be a weak part of the lineup if things pan out.
My guess would be marte leading off
This is all it took to grab Wilhemsen? That’s a little discouraging seeing Boston needs at least 1 more arm and we could have beaten this price tag without even denting the team at the ML or minor league level. great grab by Texas
Yeah seems like a really nice deal for the Rangers.
The Boston equivalent of Martin would be JBJ. Would you have done that?
I don’t think comparing Martin to JBJ is fair.
Martin was good for 2 years and then he wasn’t. His value is down and he’s set to make about $1.4 million in arbitration.
JBJ was terrible for 2 years and then he wasn’t. His value is up and he’s a year away from arbitration.
JBJ alone probably could have netted the Red Sox both Wilhelmsen and Jones, maybe even the PTBNL too.
Martin was good for 2 years, JBJ was good for 2 months. Me thinks you overvalue those 2 months. I think 2 years outweighs 2 months.
The question remains: would you do it?
If you didn’t watch baseball then you might think JBJ is just as good if not better than rickey henderson if you listen to these red sox fans on here
It’s worth a shot for Seattle, he’s got decent upside offensively, nothing special, but the speed and defense can carry an average bat. Hefty price in my opinion though.
this will set up the Rangers to deal other RP …might have sent other RP in this deal.
Have to see the other players involved…..but Martin is a helluva defensive player with a cannon for an arm. He just fell into a funk with the bat this year and couldn’t dig his way out. If M’s can get Martin to put bat on ball and use his speed like DeShields, it could be a great deal for Seattle. For Texas, you can’t have enough solid good pitchers. Wilhelmsen is a solid relief pitcher who has been a closer.
Rangers have been getting lots of calls on the RP they have…this will make it easier to deal now.
I heard that there were also prospects involved. I hope the Mariners got some as well as gave some up, because otherwise this seems lopsided.
Also I really don’t like the idea of giving up prospects when their minor league system is already so thin. I don’t know what Dipoto or his bosses have against signing some free agents instead of further deploring the minor league system.
What a deal for rangers!
As an Angels fan, I know DiPoto preached throughout the organization on throwing strikes. So it was very common place for DiPoto to ship out pitchers with high BB/9.
I’m guessing Leonys Martin’s defense and speed was viewed as more valuable than Wilhelmsen’s high BB/9. Also, Anthony Bass has had a good BB/9 over the last two seasons, though I’m sure he’ll be relegated to long relief duty like last year.
Why do the Rangers want another reliever? Their bullpen was quite good last year and they have other much more significant needs.
the Rangers have been getting lots of calls on the Rp they have. adding makes sense if they plan on making other deals regarding RP…which i assume they will
1. You never have enough pitching. 2. Nothing says you have to fill needs in the order of importance, or in any particular order.
1. 2.49 ERA, 224 IP, 1.147 WHIP, 38 saves, 9.4 K/9, 3.3 K/BB
2. 5.44 ERA, 278 IP, 1.507 WHIP, 7 saves, 7.2 K/9, 1.7 K/BB
Which would you rather have? The answer is obvious: 1. So what are 1 and 2? 1 is the top 5 relievers the Rangers had last year: Tolleson, Dyson, Diekman, Kela, and Freeman. 2 is the other TWENTY relievers they rolled out there last year. 55% of the Rangers bullpen needs fixing, what team WOULDN’T want to address that? Especially when it only costs you a guy that’s not even in your plans.
Dipoto not wasting time..al west should b competetive
What do you think the mariners are going to do for right field?
Ah-seop Son will lead off and play right field.
Just my wild guess.
Aoki as a possibility? He’d come cheap.
Does not matter how much money is spent by the Seattle club. As long as they offend the almighty, they are going nowhere.
I’m almost certainly going to regret asking this, but how exactly are they “offending the almighty?”
I noticed he didn’t capitalize almighty. Hope he didn’t “offend” the almighty with that oversight.
I’m not sure why the Rangers don’t like Martin. He had one bad year. He isn’t very expensive. Why not see if he returns to form?
Because they were able to get a credible bullpen arm for him? You never have enough pitching.
I don’t like Wilhelmsen much. He allows too many walks and his peripherals have been trending up. Plus, the Rangers pen was fine.
Yeah, seems like too much for a guy that was a decent reliever in a big @$$ park.
let’s just ignore the 278 innings of 5.44 ERA 1.507 WHIP that the 20 relievers not named Dyson/Diekman/Freeman/Kela/Tolleson lobbed last year…
We certainly can ignore that because they are gone now. Anthony bass would have been part of that. Ross Detwiler as well. As a Ranger fan I didn’t bother to learn the names of the other garbage RP’s
I’m gathering you’re on my side though. One of the worst pens became the best due to JD magic. Might as well get as many good RP arms as possible (within reason) to reduce the work load.
Also got Martin’s sorry ass attitude off the team.
Because he was in the dog house after the season when they told him, he had to report to instructional league right after the season and he told them no and went home instead. He pretty much made his own bed when team ask you to do something you do it since you are getting paid by them you better well do what they want.
Well there goes my idea I had great trade for Mariners as Braves . Here’s my idea would have made more since Braves trade to Mariners Freddy Freeman Julio Teheran Cameron Maybin Jason Grilli Erick Aybar nick swisher and 25 million for minor leagues of Alex Jackson and Austin Wilson 3b D.J Peterson c Tyler Marlettie and lp Danny Hultzen and com pic and major leagues Sp Tajuan Walker and 1b mark Trumbo then Braves could trade of micheal bourn Shelby miller and marksberry to Cubs for solar and Beaz and last trade Trumbo markakis sp Perez to Baltimore for lp Matusuz minor leagues 1b Walker Of yaskizemki and Harvey what do every body think of those trades? These trade would help Mariners Os and Cubs win and Braves would be done with this ” rebuild and then Braves could sign couple middle relieves like Jackson and Oflaherty and sign If gordan beckham and just give Daniel Castro Ss job next season
Why not just put all the players in major league baseball in a hat and sort them out randomly?
What?
The last thing the Mariners want to do is completely strip the farm of any prospects and get rid of Walker. You must be a Braves fan expecting to get rid of Swisher and Bourn that easily while also acquiring Walker, Jackson, Peterson, Soler and Baez (not counting the O’s guys bc ive never heard of them since im a Mariners fan). Plus there is something called a cap. While there is no official cap (except the luxury tax line which isnt even a real cap) each team has their own cap that the owners are willing to pay. Considering the Mariners already have $85 out of a projected $120 cap, acquring Freeman, Maybin and Swisher would basically tie up the rest of that cap room.
First off there no cap there luxury tax which is 200 million second that why I though in 25 million to help off set the money there paying and Mariners are pay 14 in Trumbo and brave taken that so you have equal same salary on swisher mariner would have gotten good center fielder that would have cost them more to get free agent cf you would have replace min for Walker in Tehran and you would have office as that could lead off hitter a closer and when it corn to prospect there no guaranteed that they will make it mariner would have player that help them win cub are look for another ace top pic that low cost and they need cf if they can’t resign flower or Jackson and marksberry was one league best left look at numbers and he low cost baez at this point is exc. and soler they shooing for starting pitching and they will have to pay all other young play soon there’s later and when it come to Baltimore trade the ps may not be able to keep Davis and they need pitching and Perez last season was not bad he had 3 very good start before he got hurt so and markakis is fan favorite so they give up lp that been up and the other are prospect like I said before there chance they be bust and that way trey can still have chance to win and not have to kill there future so need to look more in to what a trade will make since not just thank prospect are the all to be all because gm are starting to realize that
Wow. Reading your… whatever this is makes my brain hurt. Your lack of any ability to write and pure stupidity is amazing. Bravo sir. You won the Internet.
He’s trolling hahaha. Just laugh and move on
Punctuation and decent grammar would make this easier to understand. And i understand there is no cap, i stated that, but owners are only willing to pay a certain amount. The Rays for example stay under a $100 million cap because they can’t afford to go higher, so extra money isn’t necessarily going to help. Plus Maybin had literally one good year and multiple bad years so he can’t possibly qualify as a good center fielder. Mariners also have no use for Aybar, Swisher is a downgrade on Trumbo (and costs more). The only parts of this “deal” that make sense (from at least the mariners perspective and the fact that i don’t understand your explanation in your reply) is Teheran and Freeman for Walker and some combo of prospects. Even then Walker has more value/potential to be better than Teheran (and possibly more control, not sure) and the fact that the Mariners again have no intention of trading Walker or completely stripping the farm of the only good prospects (literally the only prospects worth anything) in the system.
To people who think I don’t know I what I’m talk about power is not what makes ace pitch does any one remember Tom glavine and Greg Maddox hello there hall of fame and they never through harder then 92 most of there careers throw no more then 89 so power does mean you are great I can name dozen of pitch who though the years that though 95 and harder and never did anything it’s called pitching 2nd it not swisher for Trumbo . It call even the trade when you put the money together in trade you realize with 25 million going Seattle way it even trade out expel when you think if Seattle had to sign players. And when it come to Maybin do you understand Seattle need a centerfield and if Seattle went out in the free agent they would have to pay more. Just so you know if you add contract together the Mariners would only take on around 7 million more in deal. Just so you know because you never took the time to break it down here you go Freeman make this year 12 million last year of deal swisher makes 15 last year Aybar makes 8.5 Grilli last year of contract 3.5 Maybin 8 add together 47 million here the other side arb Trumbo 10 million arb wihemleson 3 million Walker 535 thousand and 25 million and dj peterson 500 thousand so if you add that together it 40 million. So look at deal better and ow bye he way has Walker ever won 14 games twice like Julio Tehran and looks at julio’s age he.s 24 and under contract for 5 more years so look you need to look at it more closer be for you talk Mariners would have chance to win World Series and would have money to pay for season not have to pay any money for swisher and Aybar or Grilli and have money next year to get better. Julio number 11 win last season era of 4 but year be for was 2.89 and 1.91 whip walkers 11 game era 4.56 whip 1.96 so look at number better
Still, the only part of this that makes any bit of sense for them is to get Freeman. They don’t need Maybin because they just got Martin, and the others wouldn’t help that much either. Walker is a year younger than Teheran and is pitching in the AL (and in the AL West mind you) and is cheaper. Walker hasn’t won 14 games two years in a row because he has one full season under him. He will get there and more, and probably this season.
Either way, if the Mariners have this extra $40M to spend, they’d be better off spending it elsewhere. Like for instance, Heyward ($20M), Iwakuma ($16M), along with trading for and taking on Storen’s salary ($5.7M). Yes, we could use Freeman. But we’d be better off spending that money on an athletic OF’er like Heyward instead. Then you just slot Seager in the 5 hole and go Marte, Heyward, Cano, Cruz, Seager.
Why….just…why….they actually think this is helping them? lol
Who are you talking about?
Seems like a win/win trade depending upon who the PTBNL turns out to be.
I figured the Rangers and Mariners would come to some agreement on Martin he makes some sense in their ballpark. Wilhelmsen should be a nice addition to the pen, now the Rangers need to look for right handed power and a lower tier starter.
Catcher too…
Not really catcher. Read the very latest MLBTR mailbag that was posted about 5 minutes ago.
There is a big difference between “serviceable” and “good”. If JD is going to improve this club he has to at least “look” at a possible upgrade with the primary catcher. And I am sure Steve Adams would do the same if he were running the club.
Not sure what you were reading. It says he was in line with league average hitters and “worlds better than league average catchers.”
I’d much rather improve the LF situation with a player who can play 155 games instead of a catcher who plays 110. If we do that then I will gladly take an above-league-average catcher.
…and admittedly, “worlds better than league average catchers” is not right. He is pretty much league average (offensively). In the AL, you can have a low AVG catcher who has some pop. But as said, I’ll gladly take a league average catcher and good production from LF instead of vica versa. The competition for Lucroy will be steep. JD isn’t going to be the one to offer the biggest package. He also seems to be happy with catchers splitting time as opposed to having one main guy.
I do not see it the same way… The Rangers have a few different options in the OF but nobody at catcher outside of a guy who’s metrics are slightly below average defensively (but improved) and slightly above average offensively (Chirinos).
Don’t get me wrong, if Chirinos is the worst player in your starting lineup, you are in pretty good shape. The thing about Chirinos is he does nothing real bad, but he is not real good at anything either (hence serviceable). Yes, Lucroy would be nice, be he is very unlikely. But a guy like Derek Norris is not out of the question.
I think this comes down to a personal preference. I feel much better with the combination of Hamilton, Deshields, Rua, Jones, Gallo, and possibly Brinson in LF/CF than the production we would get out of Chrinios, Gimenez, and (whoever is the 3rd C on the 40 man roster is) for 162 games.
A question that I do have: Could Profar be a possible option in LF at some point?
For what is is worth, Rotoworld has Chirinos ranked as the 22nd best catcher in baseball. Obviously not all of the 21 guys ranked higher than him are available… But if Robinson was truly better than league average he would not be ranked so low. Point being, it is one persons opinion (Steve Adams) versus another (Rotoworld) on just how good/bad Robinson really is.
But Rotoworld’s rankings are based on fantasy stats, correct? There’s more to a catcher’s value than just what the fantasy stats look like. I think if the opportunity to improve presents itself, JD will jump on it. But he’s not going to broadcast it beforehand. And if they are able to improve in pitching and other positions and go forward with Chirinos, I think they’d be fine with that.
Exactly. Jimmyjack seems to really like Chirinos. And that is fine. I am just saying the position in general needs to be looked at. Chirinos is serviceable but the overall depth is poor.
Roto – Yes, I guess you could say that… I used offensive rankings on purpose because Chirinos profiles offensively as slightly above average according to Steve Adams Q
Overall ranks has Robinson listed 21st. Defensive minded catchers leapfrogged Robinson, while lesser defensive backstops slid.
To answer your question about Profar, the short answer is “no.” I can’t for the life of my find where I read it, but JD said that he is staying at SS because they think it will help his shoulder. In the article it mentions that the Rangers like the “angle” that one throws from at SS (even over 2B). I’m not sure if they are talking about arm angle, or the way your body is aligned. Arm angle can be changed (Cal Ripken threw from his hip, and Beltre could probably throw it from behind his back with 95% accuracy) so I’m guessing they mean the way that the body is aligned when throwing to 1st. It could also be just because we are trying to rebuild his value at a more in-demand position so we can trade him.
As far as rankings, Rotoworld would have him so low because he only had 273 Plate Appearances because he was hurt. I’m actually surprised he was that high on the list.
I was looking solely at offense since that’s what Steve was focusing on. I used fangraphs’ wRC+. I’m not going to pretend to be a saber genius, but if you’re unfamiliar, it’s calculated so that a score of 100 is league average, and the “+” also, among other things, gives everyone the same amount of Plate Appearances (Miggy was ranked 4th overall in wRC+ despite only playing in 119 games).
Chirinos was ranked as the 15th catcher with a 104, so only slightly above league average (I used a minimum 200 Plate appearances). Norris was 98 so slightly below. Not a huge difference. But I will add that there is something to be said about a guy catching 140ish games. It would be unfair of me to say that Chirinos is going to catch 140 games because he isn’t going to. Hamels prefers Giminez, so that’s at least 32ish games that Gimmy will catch. I’ll throw in at least another 15 to keep the starting catcher fresh.
So then we have to throw in the lack of offense that Gimmy provides, which I’m not going to do because we all know that offensively he is going to bring our catcher platoon down below league average.
I would gladly take Norris, but I’m not going to overpay for him. One problem that we have with SD is that Preller knows our ball club probably as well as JD, so we aren’t going to get to “sneak one passed him.” Everything is going to have to be pretty even, or slightly in SD’s favor.
But I would love to know what direction SD is going in, and love to know what Preller wants for Kemp, Tyson Ross, and Norris. I think if we take on Kemp’s salary we could get Tyson and Norris for pretty cheap and wouldn’t have to sell the farm. Kemp has his problems, but we’ve been searching for that righty OF bat. Kemp has also never had the opportunity to be in the AL and DH. I don’t expect him to return to MVP form, but I think some of his problems could be solved with some more rest and DH days.
Sorry, that was long.
The Profar situation is going to get interesting. I would like for him to remain a SS (increases trade value/natural position if fully healthy), but at this point I think his best chance at seeing the field in Arlington might just be be in LF.
Chirinos – Games caught is a concern. If the rest of the team catches 2/3 of the time, can Robinson really be considered your primary catcher?
Personal Catcher – Both Darvish and Hamels prefer Gimenez.
Norris – He did play 1B 17 times last year… Unsure how that played into his wRC, if any…
Kemp/Ross/Norris – That could be interesting but I do not get the feeling that is something the Rangers are willing to do (increase payroll that much more). But I would be very interested in seeing what that price would be, should the Rangers take the Kemp contract.
Yeah I’m not disagreeing with any of that. I do think that Profar will be in Triple A for most of the season so he can reestablish his value.
And yea, I’d be pretty shocked if JD did something un-JD-like and did the Kemp thing. But I’d like to just know what they are asking if we take on his full contract (dodgers are paying some of it).
I didn’t know that Darvish prefers Gimenez as well. As a fan, that is frustrating. But if it prevents the other team from scoring some runs then I’ll take it.
I agree, Profar will be in the minors. He needs to prove he is healthy more than anything.
San Diego – I could only image AJP asking for some kind of deal including Marzara, Profar, Chi Chi, Brinson and possibly Holland. The question would be how much more of Kemp’s remaining salary (not counting the Dodgers portion) could/would SD eat?
Darvish/Gimenez – I wondering if this has something to do with the language barrier.
Leonys is a ++ defender with a ++ arm, and will probably be worth three wins even with a 85-90 OPS+ playing everyday. Night and day between he and Delino in CF. And when he does get on base(which isn’t as much as you’d probably like), his speed gives pitchers fits. Makes sense for the M’s with that large outfield, just hope the Bartender can keep his numbers the same in Globe Life, which isn’t as cavernous as SafeCo. Hopefully the PTBNL is a good one.
Fine trade. Defense first, but any offense is just a bonus. Does this take Paxton-for-Gardner off the table?
I see Seattle making a splash this off season. They need to win while Felix is still effective. Would’ve loved to see Weiters sign. He’d be a good bat and really effective w their yound SPs.
Upton anyone?
Weiters and Upton would cost picks due to being offered a qualifying offer.
I believe JDP will stay away from all players with a QO attached.
Matt Wieters is staying in Baltimore after accepting the qualifying offer:
mlbtraderumors.com/2015/11/matt-wieters-accepts-qu…
So the Rangers trade:
Leonys Martin – LHB, a poor hitter but great defensive center field with some upside that is a threat on the bases.
Anthony Bass – RHP, below average-average reliever that is cheap and controllable.
And the Mariners trade:
James Jones – LHB, poor hitter and poor defensive center fielder with little upside that is a threat on the bases.
Tom Wilhelmsen – RHP, average-above average reliever that is cheap and controllable.
All in all, a pretty even swap.
MLB Trade Rumors projects that Tom Wilhelmsen, who comes with only two years of team control, in 2016 will earn $3 million, more than the combined projected 2016 salaries of Leonys Martin ($1.6 million) and Anthony Bass ($1.1 million), who each come with three years of team control.
Ranger fan here. It seems pretty even. From the comments I have read it seems like both fan groups are happy which points to a good trade. For Mariners to “win” this trade 1) Willhelmsen will have to be bad or 2) Leonys will have to bat .250+ which I’m sure he will at some point, but he became expendable to once Delino hit the scene. He also helped himself to get traded by not showing up the the AFL during playoffs. So Seattle, y’all got a great team player there.
I was hoping we would add another RP to Diekman, Dyson, Tolly, Kela. Take some of the workload off of them. Plus RP’s are so volatile. But I also didn’t want to go out and sign one of the available (and pricey) RP’s. So now we can cross off RP from the list and move on to other needs
Seattle, y’all did get an OF with speed and an arm which seems like a necessity in Safeco. But I do find it weird that y’all strengthened the pen (somewhat of a weakness, not a huge one) with Benoit, then traded away a decent-good RP. Maybe y’all have some others coming up and he became expendable like Leonys did. Bass is no more than a mop up man.
Furbush, Smith, Benoit, Zych, and Rollins all have the skill set to make the M’s bullpen good again. Willhelmsen was too inconsistent as closer, so he was expendable, same with farquhar. Plus, Dipoto said he probably wasn’t done bolstering the ‘Pen.
Then it sounds like it makes sense all around. I snagged smith early in fantasy when Rodney was struggling. McClendon took forever to remove Rodney but it finally paid off. Then McClendon screwed me down the stretch because smith had like 2 bad outings. He’s really good. Very unusual delivery. If I were M’s I would rather have him closing than Benoit. I don’t think the closer has been announced yet, but I’m just sayin who I would have. Lots of K’s and grounders equals success.
Not saying that Martin was on track to be or is the next Willie Mays or Joe D., but to those of you who are dissing him here, y’all obviously have never seen him play.
well said…
If I had to pick, I think TEX wins this trade but, “only time will tell”. In 2014, Leonys Martin was the best defensive CF in MLB. James Jones can fly and will likely hit better in TEX. Tom Wilhelmson throws hard and can close but will be 32. Anthony Bass eats innings will likely be better in SEA.
I’m not sure this trade will make me run out for season tickets, ( I had a season ticket package in the 80’s for the Mariners, so what do I know ) but it seems like a bit of an uptick. Jones was clearly an on the bubble player and the Bartender isn’t going to take you to the WS. So maybe this will be an improvement in a sorry outfield . Does anyone else remember when corner outfield was a power position .
Generally, corner positions are manned with power hitters but, its better to put the best players on the field… Some exceptions: LF Charlie Jamieson, Barney McCosky, Lou Brock, Pete Rose, Roy White, Ralph Garr, Willie Wilson, Rickey Henderson, Tim Raines, Vince Coleman, Darin Erstad, Johnny Daman, Carl Crawford; RF Sam Rice, Jack Tobin, Paul Waner, Dale Mitchel, Ichiro Suzuki, and Brett Gardner
It is funny how some mariners fans are saying it was a mistake to get rid off wilhelmsen, jones, miller, lomo, etc. We are picking up players that are complementary players to cruz, cano, hernandez,and seager.
As for our pitching I feel we should turn to Paxton or walker into our closer. I know that is far fetch, but they have an above average fast ball and a great second pitch. Smith 7th, benoit 8th, and walker/Paxton as our closer.
Look at the giants, royals, and mets. There is no superstars on any of those teams except maybe buster posey. Most of their players have strong pitching, defense, speed, above average rate, high OBP, and low strike out rate. I like the small pick ups and trades we have made so far. I am optimistic for next year.
Go mariners
People often said Paxton would be in relief. I don’t think just yet. Not like when we moved Brandon Morrow to the pen.
I view Leonys Martin as a slightly better, slightly younger and far, far less expensive version of Red Sox outfielder Rusney Castillo, who signed a seven-year, $72.5 million contract in August 2014 amid the Cuban frenzy that saw Yasiel Puig and Jose Abreu post fWAR of 5.3 that season. Indeed, Martin himself posted a robust fWAR of 3.5 that year, topping the 3.3 fWAR of fellow Cuban Yoenis Cespedes.
This year Martin posted an fWAR of 0.5 in 95 games while Castillo posted an fWAR of 0.4 in 80 games.
Steamer600, which assumes 600 plate appearances for each hitter, projects 2016 fWAR of 1.4 for Martin and 1.0 for Castillo, who is eight months older than the 27-year-old Martin.
Martin played in the Cuban National Series in his age 17-20 seasons while Castillo played in the CNS in his age 20-24 seasons. Martin and Castillo posted these numbers in Cuba:
LM 1615 PA, .308/.429/.457/.886
RC 1294 PA, .318/.381/.502/.883
MLB Trade Rumors projects a 2016 salary of $1.6 million in the first of Martin’s three remaining years of team control. Castillo has five years and a guaranteed $56.5 million left on his contract (unless he opts out of the $13.5 million in the final year of the pact).
The trade could well be a win for the Mariners and the Rangers.
Since you all put so much in to numbers and last look more in to track record of player . Number about the same in all player in the trade
Bye the way so you all know after I put my deal out there Dan Plesac brought up simpler trade between Braves and Seattle on Intentional talk today so I wasn’t only one who though a trade like this would make since
Bye way just so you all know I’m not stupid I have iq of 148 I admitted I’m not best speller but does anyone think about spell check and when your write down I’m done
I say one other thing to all how many on her have 3 degrees and can speak 5 different languages so
It may be time for Wilhemsen to cut you off.
How likely is a Taijuan Walker AAA piece for Yasiel Puig deal?
Not likely, considering Dipoto is high on Walker, and thinks he can be a great pitcher. Not worth trading for an ego driven player like Puig.
Who is the closer now? Are we relying on Benoit?
Carson Smith probably needs another season. I hope Soria is brought in.
Jouquin Benoit & Joakim Soria & Joe-king Beimel.
MLB Trade Rumors projects a 2016 salary of $1.6 million for Leonys Martin in the first of his three arbitration seasons even though Martin this season earned $3.75 million in the final year of the five-year, $15.5 million contract he signed in May 2011 as an amateur free agent from Cuba.
However, Section B(1)(a) of Article VI on Page 13 of the MLB Collective Bargaining Agreement limits a pay reduction to 20 percent of the salary for MLB service in the previous season.
mlb.mlb.com/pa/pdf/cba_english.pdf
If that is accurate, Martin is entitled to a minimum 2016 salary of $3 million which, coincidentally, matches the projected arbitration salary for Tom Wilhelmsen.
We are aware of this and working to figure it out. Martin’s salary last year came from the contract he signed as an international FA.
Former Seattle pitcher Joel Pineiro signed a pre-arbitration extension with the Mariners that went through 2006, his fifth year of team control. Following that season and despite a remaining year of team control, the Mariners non-tendered Pinerio because the team did not think the righthander was worth the minimum 80 percent of his 2006 salary of $6.8 million.