Per Shannon Drayer of SeattleSports, the Mariners and outfielder Kole Calhoun are in agreement on a minor league deal. The deal is pending a physical, with Calhoun already in Seattle’s spring clubhouse.
An 11-year MLB veteran, Calhoun’s big league career began as a member of the Angels during the 2012 season, and after succeeding in a part time role during the 2013 season, became the club’s regular right fielder, a position he held until the end of his Angels tenure following the 2019 season. Over that period of seven seasons, Calhoun slashed .250/.323/.426, good for an above average 105 wRC+, with his only season of pronounced struggles coming in 2018, when he slashed just .208/.283/.369 with a wRC+ of just 77, 23% worse than league average. Underlying metrics implied Calhoun’s struggles were due at least in part to bad luck, however: His .249 BABIP was well below his career norms, and his xwOBA outstripped his wOBA by nearly 50 points.
While Calhoun seemed to return to form in 2019 (105 wRC+) and excelled in the shortened 2020 season (125 wRC+ with 16 home runs in just 54 games) following a move to the Diamondbacks, his struggles returned for the 2021 campaign. Calhoun played just 51 games that season while battling hamstring issues, and struggled to a slash line of .235/.297/.373 (80 wRC+) even when he was able to take the field. Still, Calhoun’s past success was enough to land him a $5.2MM guarantee from the Rangers last offseason, though his struggles only grew as he posted a line of just .196/.257/.330 (67 wRC+) over 125 games with Texas during the 2022 campaign.
Now, Calhoun is poised to join a Mariners club that has no shortage of outfield depth on a minor league pact. All of Jarred Kelenic, AJ Pollock, Dylan Moore, and Sam Haggerty appear likely to mix and match in Seattle’s outfield alongside regulars Julio Rodriguez and Teoscar Hernandez this season, leaving Calhoun likely to serve as minors depth alongside players such as Cooper Hummel and Leonys Martin. That said, Seattle’s outfield mix did lose Taylor Trammell last week to surgery that will keep him out of action for at least six more weeks, leaving Calhoun better situated among the players who could potentially take advantage if Kelenic struggles this spring.
While Calhoun’s 2022 struggles are certainly concerning, there is room for optimism he can improve headed into the 2023 campaign. Not only did he miss time in both of the past two seasons with injuries, but 2022 in particular saw him under-perform underlying metrics, as his BABIP last year clocked in 20 points below his career mark, while he under-performed his xwOBA by over 30 points. Calhoun’s contact quality remained largely in line with his career marks, as well. Additionally, it’s possible that the new shift rules being introduced this season could help Calhoun significantly, as Calhoun was among the most shifted on free agents available this offseason.
That said, there are still some red flags in Calhoun’s profile indicating his struggles could continue. Calhoun’s strikeout rate rose dramatically over his career norms in 2022, as he whiffed in a whopping 32.1% of plate appearances against a career strikeout rate of just 22.6%. His 6.4% walk rate in 2022 also represents a noticeable dip from his career mark of 9.1%. With better health, positive regression, and new rules all potentially benefiting him, it’s certainly plausible that Calhoun could bounce back in his age-35 campaign, if given the opportunity.
Trammells out for several weeks
I like this deal for the Mariners. Zero risk
Contingency plan if Kelenic can’t figure it out + bridges the gap from Trammell’s absence
If? …..when
Haha good point! One can hope though
Kelenic still has a high ceiling
Super high ceiling, and he’s shown it at times, but I think he doesn’t know how to mentally deal with failure. Leaving a swing and a miss behind and moving on is a skill. Hope he crushes in 2023, but good that the M’s have some other options
This is probably a courtesy signing to give him a chance to showcase himself during spring. His chances of making the Mariners are slim. He’s more of a DH now, and with his injury history, there’s little chance Seattle would ask him to handle any kind of significant OF role and Seattle doesn’t have room for another DH as things currently stand.
If La Stella has a bad spring, maybe. But he’s probably more likely auditioning for a job with another club.
That said, an unspectacular spring could leave him no other choice but a stint in AAA….or retirement.
As an Angels fan I enjoyed watching Kole. Had some great throws from right and hilariously headbutted a ball when he was with the Diamondbacks.
Good luck with the M’s man!
One of the few gingers in the mlb
Kole was fun to watch next to Trout. They were very close friends. I hope he cracks the MLB roster and rakes against everyone not wearing red. By all accounts, a good dude…
I was hoping Reds would take a flyer on him. LH bat RF..home run park.
I love the Red Baron. Calhoun’s defense is his biggest asset. If he can get his bat back to his career standards, he’ll help any club with the glove…and he has a cannon for an arm.
The return of Brian Giles Lite…good for him.
Under one year for 10 yrs service time…get it.
Hope he sticks. Hardnosed player who clearly loves the game.
Indeed!
Great guy to have on your team if you enjoy watching a dude either strike out or hit ground balls to the right side of the infield. Hated watching him take at-bats from younger players in Texas last year.
Solid pickup for the Mariners. Makes you wonder why the Yankees didn’t take a flyer on him, LH hitter with some pop that plays solid defense and had on a minor league deal
Needs 42 days to qualify for full mlb 10 yr pension.Good luck Kole!
I can remember thinking back how about picking up Calhoun since at the time he was available but the M’s weren’t interested in spending money. Calhoun does have power now for him to regroup. That goes for all those other hopefuls in camp. There could be one or two having a breakthrough though hard enough to see how this is going to be since most of the team is already intact. just the same will be seeing some.
Once again suggesting absurdly that bad luck can cause a guy to have a 270 obp in 550 pa….with a 208 avg and 360 slugging. Smh. Maybe a few times a decade it may be possible. But reading these articles it’s as common as the sunset.
Put some butter on him
But Cole only hits against the Mariners
MEH is all I can say about this.
He can’t hit