The Mariners have a fresh face joining their outfield mix. Jake Fraley has been selected from Triple-A and will be available for today’s game. Domingo Santana has been placed on the injured list with right elbow inflammation, the team announced. Santana’s IL stint is retroactive to yesterday on August 19th, though the elbow discomfort is something he has been dealing with for close to a month now. With the addition of Fraley, Seattle’s 40-man roster still has two spots remaining – with one seat presumably saved for Felix Hernandez should his rehab assignments go smoothly.
Santana has quietly become one of the more potent bats in the Seattle lineup this season. It was at least a little surprising that Trader Jerry didn’t field further trade calls for him at the deadline, but with two more years of arbitration eligibility and plenty of near-term financial flexibility, the Mariners felt no pressure to move him. For his part, Santana is better suited for regular at-bats on a non-contender like Seattle until he can add some dimensionality to his game.
The hulking 6’5″ outfielder has DH’ed on occasion, but mostly splits his time evenly between left and right field. Defensive metrics are slightly more enamored with his work in right, but it’s a negligible difference in the grand scheme of things (-8 DRS to -7 DRA, -23.7 UZR/150 to -17.8 UZR/150). Regardless of where they stick him, Santana has not provided any additional value with the glove.
With the bat, Santana looks the part of middle-of-the-order slugger. Towering presence is a check, home run output is a check (21 on the year), and his overall batting line of .256/.332/.449 sticks the landing with an above-average 110 wRC+ – right in range of his career average (112 wRC+). When he connects, Santana does damage (above-average 42.5% hard-hit percentage), but getting bat-to-ball remains a struggle. Santana, 27, tops the league with 159 strikeouts, striking out in 32.1% of his at-bats – the highest percentage in the majors.
Fraley, 24, will prepare for his major league debut. A native of Frederick, MD about 45 miles north of Washington DC, Fraley is a former 2nd round selection of by Tampa Bay and the current #8 ranked prospect in Seattle’s system per MLB.com. Speed and defense are his calling cards, but after injuries slowed his progress in 2017, power has begun populating in-game for Fraley. His isolated power has increased with each new rung of the minor league ladder, from .200 ISO in High-A to .226 ISO in Double-A to .276 ISO across 168 plate appearances for Triple-A Tacoma this season. Fraley joined the Mariners this past winter as part of the Mike Zunino deal.
Fun fact for your trivia guides from MLB.com’s Greg Johns (via Twitter), Fraley will be the 17th Mariner to debut in the major leagues this season.
About a month ago I went to a Rainiers game excited to see Jake Fraley. He went 0 for 5 w 4 strikeouts. Left at least 6-7 runners on base!! Haha- ran some really good routes to track down balls in the OF
Umm ok one game?? That’s how your gonna judge the guy? He’s been raking this entire year.
Agreed. He looks like a solid prospect. Should produce in the majors.
I hope you’re correct. He looks more like a top notch fourth outfielder to me, but if he can become a regular, I’ll be ecstatic.
Umm who’s judging him? I’m just saying it’s bad luck on my part that I catch him on a rare off night. I literally went to Cheney Stadium JUST to see Fraley! You don’t think that’s funny? I like the player and IMO I thought the dude should’ve been in Seattle in place of Mac Williamson 2 months ago!
Previous Fraley article said they had 3 open spots. What gives?
Ha, you’re right! Got my numbers crossed with Texas. Mariners 40-man is still at 38. Rangers’ 40-man is full.
Santana himself said he felt the discomfort since the break. He starting to DH a couple of weeks ago, but they should have put him on the IL once it was clear he wasn’t going to be traded, if not sooner.
Domingo Santana didn’t get much interest for the same reason JD Martinez and Nicholas Castellanos didn’t. Santana may be the worse defensive OF of the three. Martinez and Casty can both throw well.
Is there a worse defensive OF in MLB?
He was terrible in LF, but much better in RF. JD Martinez wasn’t for sale and is owed a ton of money, especially if he sticks with his contract, and Castellanos is terrible everywhere in the field and due to hit free agency.
You can’t compare those two to Santana. It was more likely the injury or a high asking price that kept him where he is. Seattle isn’t desperate to get rid of him, nor should they be.