The Nationals and Mariners lined up on a trade sending lefty reliever Jose A. Ferrer to Seattle for rookie catcher Harry Ford and minor league pitcher Isaac Lyon. Both teams have announced the trade.
Seattle adds a flamethrower from the left side to complement Andres Munoz and Matt Brash in the backend of the bullpen. The price is somewhat steep, as Ford ranks 42nd in MLB.com’s top 100 prospect rankings. Lyon was taken in the 10th round of the 2025 draft. He made a handful of appearances at Single-A this past season.
Ferrer emerged as Washington’s closer after Kyle Finnegan was shipped to Detroit at the trade deadline. He picked up 11 saves over the final two months of the season. The 25-year-old’s 21.9% strikeout rate and mid-4.00s ERA don’t scream shutdown closer, but he had an excellent 2.85 SIERA and an elite 4.9% walk rate on the year. Ferrer put together a stretch of 14 straight scoreless appearances shortly after taking over as closer, though he did falter over his final few appearances.
Ferrer has made 142 appearances out of the Nationals’ bullpen since his debut in 2023. He has a career 4.36 ERA, but his xERA and xFIP are both below 3.50. While he hasn’t piled up strikeouts, Ferrer’s upper-90s sinker has helped him rank among the best relievers in ground ball rate. Ferrer is under team control through 2029. He won’t reach arbitration until the 2027 campaign.
Ford has been a top 5 prospect in Seattle’s system since getting taken in the first round of the 2021 draft. The 12th overall pick slotted in at fifth among the Mariners’ prospects in 2022, per MLB.com. He reached the top spot in 2023, and most recently slotted in at fourth. Ford has hit at every minor league stop, while also providing significant contributions as a base stealer.
The 22-year-old Ford slashed .283/.408/.460 with 16 home runs and seven steals at Triple-A this past year. He struck out less than 20% of the time while posting a massive 16.2% walk rate. Ford briefly debuted with the big-league club, mostly operating as a pinch hitter and defensive replacement. He went 1-for-6 in eight appearances.
The 16 home runs with Tacoma were a career high for Ford, though the seven steals were a disappointing total after he swiped 35 bags at Double-A in 2024. Ford’s elite walk rate has allowed him to consistently put up huge on-base numbers. Outside of a .377 OBP in 2024, he’s been at or above .400 in each season of his minor league tenure. Ford’s power outlook is more gap-to-gap than over-the-fence, but his combination of speed and on-base skills gives him a unique offensive profile, particularly for a catcher.
With Cal Raleigh landing a six-year extension before the 2025 campaign, Ford was going to be blocked in Seattle for the foreseeable future. He’ll head to Washington to join a catching group that struggled with injuries and production last season. Recurring concussion issues limited Keibert Ruiz to 68 games in 2025. He briefly returned to the team in early July, then went right back on the IL and never made it back to the big-league squad. Riley Adams handled the majority of the reps behind the plate, along with brief cameos from Drew Millas and Jorge Alfaro. Washington’s backstops ranked 29th in OPS. Adams is back on a one-year split deal, while Alfaro is a free agent.
Lyon made four starts with Modesto this past year. The 21-year-old righty will head to Fredericksburg to continue honing his craft. Lyon is the son of former pitcher Brandon Lyon.
Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reported the Mariners were nearing a Ferrer deal. Robert Murray of FanSided reported that Ford was heading to Washington. Golden was first with Lyon’s inclusion. Photos courtesy of Imagn Images.
wrong link for ferrer
Why?
I don’t like it. Wrong link for Ferrer too.
I love the reliever. Hate the price paid. I want a 1 or 2 starting pitcher or a power bat for a top 50 prospect. Yankees got 2 years of Bednar. Sure this guy has 4 years. But Yankees didn’t even give up a top 100 let alone top 50. Philly paid a bit more but got more with Duran. Those are deadline moves. Right now there are plenty of free agents to sign.
I agree. If they can turn him into a high leverage reliever though, most will no longer care. The price was definitely a reach though. I would think they could get a better reliever for him, let alone him and another prospect. Maybe this was the best that was offered. I would find that hard to believe though.
AI GM: Obviously this is what the market bore for each player. Each team would not have made this trade if it wasn’t the best return available.
Your comment echoes some of the reactions to the Red Sox trade for Jose Oviedo a few days ago.
Many fans read too much into prospect rankings and overestimate the value of these players in trade for MLB talent.
Already a high leverage reliever. Can they increase K rate and make him a great closer sure. But as is a awesome late inning weapon.
Obviously not true. Gms make stupid awful moves often. Obviously excluding myself. This is a weak bad trade but far from the worst.
Hate it on paper… Faith in the process I guess.
AI GM: LOL! I look forward to the announcement of your hiring.
You’re going to cause panic! I have no interest in taking a front office position with a team. I hope to provide my expertise to mlbtr comment readers for many years to come. Sleep well tonight friends and family.
The peripherals are good. I have high hopes.
I like the reliever. Don’t think Ford is close to being untouchable. Just Seattle paid as much as they could and still get a passing grade of a D. Won’t be surprised at all if Ford is just a guy or even nothing. Right now though Washington got a top 100 that’s still a possible catcher for a reliever. They gotta be thrilled.
I would be thrilled if I were the Nats. Relievers are as fickle as they come.
Agree Nats are thrilled. Nats just got a 1st round pick. Another pick. And didn’t have to pay their signing bonus. If they wanted to they could go out and sign or trade for a better similar or lesser reliever. At the trade deadline a top 100 for a reliever ok you gotta do what you gotta do. December you have more options.
If you think you’re getting a #1 or #2 starter for a Top 50 prospect, you’re high.
I don’t think teams are as bullish on Ford as some fans are. His offensive value has been in walks, which probably won’t translate in the bigs.
I’m guessing they meant as part of a package for a one or two starter.
wow both players have wrong links. doesn’t take that much to check you have it right when the breaking news post is less characters than a tweet
They use some tool to grab the profiles, and it can be wrong. Agreed that a quick double check should be applied.
Especially since it happens on this site so frequently.
We all figure it out and get over it. We all have the ability to notice and type the name in again on the search bar.
Meh why pay anyone if they link these players wrong around 50% of the time?
Sounds like they might need a new tool lol
Fewer characters
Oh my goodness, a site almost all of us use for free made a brief mistake!! How can we survive!
14th wrong link this year but who’s counting.
Hahaha-hahaha
WGAF ??? For realz, hope you guys aren’t anybody’s bosses at work, you would be insufferable to deal with. Nitpick Nitpik Nitpick over stupid s&it that doesn’t matter
It’s “for reals.” Please get that fixed you ignorant son-of-a-b!!!!
You misspelled the second nitpick.
Billy Goats: Actually, it’s FOR REAL, Mr. Pot. 🤣
Alfred, amen baby!!! Amen!!! Grammar matters more than anything in life. Who cares what this trade is, let’s just keep our grammar properly!!!
Good thing I’m drinking tonight
You used an adverb instead of an adjective. The word should be “proper”, not “properly”.
Billy Goats: Have you considered a career in grammar law enforcement? The Grammar Police Academy is continuously recruiting.
I is so excited. Almost two excited!!!!
Eye sea wut ewe dun there.
Doesn’t take much to rewrite their name in the search bar either
The real Henry ford?! 🤓
And the real Jose Ferrer?!
The guy who shot Jesse James?
Robert Ford shot Jesse James.
The coward Robert Ford.
Temu Ford Vs. Ferreri
Henry Ford or Harry Ford?
Pretty sure it’s Harrison Ford
Are you sure it wasn’t George Harrison?
Edsel Ford
Edsel Ford Fong
Ford Frick. Back to baseball.
Frick or Frack?
This feels like the classic case of overvaluing a reliever simply because he’s a LHP with control and good analytics. Not like that doesn’t make sense, but for Ford? Too much to give up.
Could be an intentional overpay knowing Ford is at best playing 80-100 games of DH/catcher with Cal ahead of him and Luke Stevenson behind. But seems like they didn’t get enough in return.
That’s just silly IMO. Ford doesn’t have some expiration date, the guy turns 23 in a few months. Why would they have to use him or trade him now? Have him be in reserve and either use him later or trade him later. This feels like bias for action.
Prospects do have an expiration date. The rule 5 is coming up next week. Marco Luciano just got claimed on waivers. These things happen when you have too many prospects unfortunately.
Billy this had nothing to do with the rule 5 draft.
Very odd trade if you ask me from the M’s side.
Except prospects DO have an expiration date. Once a top prospect reaches AAA, if they are not starting in the big leagues within a year, they will quickly labeled as a role player or worse as a AAAA player and the next prospect will quickly supplant them. These “names on a list” are quietly disposed of anytime they don’t work out because Baseball America doesn’t want people to know that they are just “names on a list” until they produce in the majors. And the quicker they move them down the list, the quicker they hope you forget how highly they were once ranked.
At some point maybe but a 23 year old catcher that was performing that wouldn’t be the case anytime soon.
Even if they should trade him it’s about the value you get back. This feel light.
Simm, I mostly agree. But also for the last year prospects have been way down in value. Relievers have been way up. Seattle can’t wait for a good value to appear. If they could get more for Ford, they would have.
Relievers have been way up for quite a while now. Remember the haul that Ken Giles got when he went from the Phillies to the Astros. 5 prospects including a former #1 overall pick. And Giles only had two years in the bigs at that point and was never really that good after the deal.
Hiflew- this dude just doesn’t have the same track record. If it was for a reliever with a more proven track record I could see it.
Of course he doesn’t have the same track record, but he was also only traded for ONE prospect.
Actually two.
Sorry, two prospects. Didn’t see the other guy. But still two is not five.
Yeah I caught it, but it wouldn’t let me edit.
1-2-5 is all a matter of what the ceilings are.
This is a very underwhelming trade in my eyes.
Feels more like a team that wanted a reliever but didn’t want to spend money on one. So they traded away a very good prospect for a reliever with not the best track record. I get his numbers are more mid 3 than the 4 results.
Clearly they were looking for a lefty reliever not making any money. With some upside…they got that at a pretty big prospect cost instead of a financial cost.
Marco Luciano is no Harry Ford.
Ford may not have a position, ultimately. A man without a country. Lot of skepticism whether he can stick at catcher.
Absolutely, he’s no Luciano. Luciano was ranked significantly higher, in a significantly more valued position and looked like a potential perrenial all star. Harry Ford looks like a solid everyday catcher. Much more in line with what Keibert Ruiz was, but with a less traditional skillset for a catcher.
Son- I guess we will find out. My issues really isn’t traded Ford. I just don’t like who they traded him for. A back end reliever who doesn’t have a high strike out rate. Not a great combo.
BA ranked him #51 pre-2024. In pre-2025, they ranked him #95. That feels an expiration date to me. Or at least a move to the day-old bread table.
San Diego traded the #3 prospect in baseball and 3 other prospects for a reliever and a veteran starter that wouldnt crack most rotations
Simm: The following is my response to a similar comment by AI GM…
Obviously this is what the market bore for each player. Each team would not have made this trade if it wasn’t the best return available.
Your comment echoes some of the reactions to the Red Sox trade for Jose Oviedo a few days ago.
Many fans read too much into prospect rankings and overestimate the value of these players in trade for MLB talent.
San Diego is absolutely insane. They can’t be used for comps.
I remember being excited about the Phillies haul on the Ken Giles trade, but boy did it turn out to be a real sack of sh¡t.
Bart Harley Jarvis: That was the deal for the infamous bust Mark Appel.
“Significantly more valued”
That is absurd. Catcher is just as or more valuable as SS depending on the team and staff. I understand that the Catcher position has lost some of its value defensively in the modern game due to new rules and technology but to say SS is significantly more valued is just wrong.
Go back a few years for reporting on Ford. The Mariners and rival scouts were not fully sold on Ford as a catcher, and he doesn’t quite hit well enough to be a non-catcher. M’s fans over value their prospects, like everyone else, so try to ignore those biases here.
yeasties: Every team’s fans overvalue their prospects. See the comments from Red Sox fans about Jhostynxon Garcia.
Ford does play some outfield. I never caught a game of him doing so but he runs well and is athletic so seems very possible.
Other teams really value Catcher many to the point that if they had one ranked say 60 overall they would have him 30 40 just because catcher.
M’s tried him in LF a couple years ago and he was not good in the OF and gave up on that experiment. He is very athletic for a C and his future is at C where M’s have Raleigh for the the next several years so doesn’t have the value of a top 100 prospect in Seattle. I usually don’t like trading a top 100 prospect for a RP but Ford really doesnt have a path in Seattle.
Ford + another player
I had some prospect fatigue on ford. He seemed overhyped his whole career even though they were pushing him hard through their system. He broken out last year ! He had a fantastic debut and looks like the real deal ! Great grab for the price, but Washington has Ruiz already and just traded away their closer 🤷♂️
Ruiz is garbo
Ruiz isn’t very good, and a team like Washington doesn’t need to focus on a closer right now, especially if they can get Ford in return.
Insane trade. Ferrer is not Miller, why he commands a top 50 prospect is insane.
Fleece by the Nats, plus they got another guy from the mariners too!
We don’t know that. We’ll know who won in a year at the earliest.
Maybe both will prove to have benefitted.
Where is Ford a top 50 prospect?
For rd42…
mlb.com/milb/prospects/top100/
Thanks, didnt see that.
#42 is a lot different than #3. Also, there were 3 other prospects involved in the Miller trade
Miller strikes out a few more people
Ferrer is LH.
He’s been top 50 on and off since he’s been drafted
The Washington Nationals have soured on catcher Keibert Ruiz, who was a higher-ranked prospect than Harry Ford. In July 2021 Ruiz was roughly the same age Ford is today when the Los Angeles Dodgers traded Ruiz and three others to Washington for Trea Turner and Max Scherzer.
Jays gave up a decent prospect for Varland at the trade deadline. It doesn’t scream overpay by the Mariners but maybe the they don’t value Ford long term.
I’m losing trust in Jerry Dipoto again.
Super-I think he was drinking. Maybe totally drunk.
Because they addressed a need with a guy who was going to backup Cal once a week or sit in AAA?
Let’s see how the roster looks on opening day. Otherwise, the offseason is going to feel a lot longer than it actually is.
This comment was for Super Duper
why?
Have a huge asset you can’t give 100 games to… Because of an MVP runner up. So trade it for a commodity reliever you might find in your basement. What in the world. How does that make sense? I would have thought the offers for ford would have been…. Very substantial.
It’s because the consensus must be Ford won’t fly at catcher. If he is not a catcher, where else will he play ? He’s a small dude and not enough power for DH. I think this left-hander has upside yet and he looks solid under the hood. Lefties with gas are not easy to find for high leverage work.
you thought that, however, they weren’t. Probably very few legitimate offers for him.
Yeah I am not a prospect hugger but this seems a bit wild. Ferrer has great studs but you scrape guys off the wire to turn around, not trade top prospects for them
I think everyone expected him to be traded for an infielder. This pitcher is controlled through 2030 but dang.
What sort of infielder would a prized, but unproven prospect bring back?
Now we’ll never know!
You have to add catching prospect, which immediately gives a higher value.
WadeBoggsWildRide: Count me out of “everyone.”
He probably was overrated a bit, but it’s fair to say that Ferrer was underrated as well.
Solid move for the Nats to get a catcher after lack of production from Ruiz. Ferrer can be replaced easier than finding a potentially good catcher.
What are the Nats going to do with Ruiz? Highly overpaid backup catcher for the rest of the decade?
Nats fan here to give you my take. I don’t care if they have Ruiz hand out peanuts or clean lockers, as long as they don’t play him anymore.
Two concussions. It’s possible his days behind the dish are done.
If he’s done behind the dish he is likely done period.
Don’t know what will happen with him. Do know I was upset by his extension. Not proven to be even average as a hitter and far away from arbitration and he gets that. Ridiculous from Rizzo.
Biggest problem with Ruiz is behind the plate. Can maybe hide him as a backup for another year but probably best just to move on.
Ruiz isn’t ever going to catch anymore. Multiple concussions pretty much rule that out. Same thing happened with Joe mauer and others. If you can produce enough offense he’ll get time maybe first base left field DH.
Nats just received a 10 year starter behind the plate ⚾
You mean Harry Ford?
I was about to explode since I had no idea a Henry ford existed on the mariners
Wait it is actually Harry ford im exploding like Mount St. Helens what is special about a 4 era reliever
That was Harry Truman
If you watch Ferrer pitch, he has great stuff. Every time I watch him, I’m always shocked that his actual numbers are so pedestrian. Maybe the Mariners really unlock his potential. Still a steep price to pay but I think eventually, you’ll really like Ferrer.
Just being on a better team will unlock better numbers for him. Seems like everything else is there. But its hard to put up elite reliever stats on a terrible team.
Not a 4 era reliever
Ferrer is actually far better than his stats indicate. The Mariners should be able to turn him into a high leverage back of the bullpen arm.
Potentially better
Doesn’t Gregory santos ring a bell?
Santos had a better year and we acquired him for much less than a Harry ford and santos then proceeds to play horribly and get injured
Granted ferrer probably won’t go down that path but I’m still skeptical on the raw guys
Charlie is having a rough time with this post.
surely there is more to the trade?
Because Mel Ferrer wasn’t available.
Neither was Miguel
They must all be at the family reunion.
Miguel played a supporting character in Twin Peaks, which was filmed a few miles east of Seattle. As the squirrel said, IT’S ALL CONNECTED.
Unless more players are involved, that’s kind of a BS trade for the M’s. More explanation, please.
Look, it makes no sense. You have a consensus top-prospect catcher -premium position- ready to take the back-up job as soon as next season… And you trade him away for THE most volatile position in baseball? And you still send another prospect?
I’m sure you’ve heard this already but, you just got robbed, Jerry.
Even if there aren’t many chances to play everyday, still is a good development curve.
Sometimes I feel I have absolutely no clue about trading values and negotiations.
With all due respect to Ferrer, he better turn into Billy Wagner.
How is there not more? Ford for a LHRP who’s mediocre but has a pulse?
Great none closer high leverage reliever.
Good for the Nats, I guess.
Feels light for Ford
Feels right for Washington
Good lord… wrong link for Ferrer, and it’s HARRY Ford, not Henry Ford! (Right?! I mean, it has to be.)
Why would the Mariners trade Ford for a so-so reliever?
My trade grades:
Nationals: A+
Mariners: C=
The Mariners get a good bullpen arm, yes, but Ford is way to valuable, should’ve squeezed for more.
Agreed, Astros27.
Ford and a few other pieces would make sense for an Abrams + Ferrer package. But this is kinda crazy
Also, it’s Ford and another player heading to Washington.
As an Astros fan, I’m not completely sad or blown up. I really hate it when the teams just do some horrible trade. Like when Joey Loperfido, Jake Bloss, and Will Wagner for Yusei Kikuchi. I feel what the Seattle fans think. It’s going to take a toll on someone’s emotions.
That kikuchi trade was insane at the time, too. That was for a half a season, too. Ferrer is controllable but isn’t a starter so I don’t understand this package
That Kikuchi trade wasn’t/isn’t quite as bad as it seems.
The Astros got Yusei for one playoff drive and he was lights out dominant, giving them everything they could have asked for and more.
On the Jays side, Wagner was already traded away for a low value depth catching prospect.
Bloss has yet to appear in the majors for the Jays and is doing the Tommy John thing so his future outcome is still very much in the air.
Loperfido is going to be 27 next season and has looked good in the cups of coffee he gets but hasn’t got a proper look yet.
I think the subsequent moves the M’s make this offseason play an important part in how this grades out. If they put the money they saved by not signing a free agent reliever toward a huge impact bat or two starter-quality bats, then the grade goes up. If they only bring back Polanco and tinker around the edges, then yeah, I’m not a huge fan of the trade.
I still want to see another RHP for leverage situations.
This is arguably a lateral move, since they now need a catcher.
@Canuckle, thats all easy to say in hindsight. Those three were all 6-14 org prospects at the time. Crazy haul for a half a season of an up and down SP
@ Myaccount2, that makes sense, except what kind of cost saving did they get by trading a pre-arb player for another and now needing a backup C? Seems like a lateral move, while simultaneously giving up a consensus top prospect.
@myaccount Oh Geez, I thought you said Polanco & Winker , almost choked on my lunch.
Nicely summed up. The only thing wrong with that trade was that the Astros did not sign him at the end of the season.
Keep in mind that what they need now is a BACKUP catcher. There are more than a few decent options out there right now on the FA market.
Ummm, they have some guy named Raleigh that will handle about 140 games, so no, they don’t need a catcher. They do need a backup catcher…. maybe Garver at league minimum?
You had Ford at league minimum, but no way you Garver for that. No way Raleigh catches 140 games either.
@guilderc- Possibly quite a bit if I’m any sort of fortune teller, but I could certainly be wrong and then I’d dislike the move even more. But I suspect the true leverage relievers in this free agent class will make bank. I think backup C can be addressed for $5M AAV or under. I think $5-10M of savings can be valuable depending on how it’s used.
I like Joey too much. But really we have to wait. It’ll probably be worth it if Ferrer has like a consistent <0.70 ERA or something like that.
Loperfido was #6. That alone should be enough. Bloss was #11.
Crazy, keep in mind Kikuchi was a rental. Based on how he turned out, it doesn’t seem that bad, (C- rating to an A).
Would take Ford plus to get Abrams alone.
But that is the thing. Ford is a LOT more valuable to teams that don’t have a 60 home run hitting catcher. Their choice was to get something now or wait while he withers on the vine and get less later. The Rockies just learned that with former top 100 catcher Drew Romo. Lost on waivers for nothing.
Nats are getting a top prospect for a closer.
For an average relief pitcher
Ferrer is a perfect fit for the Mariners bullpen. Has all the tools to be elite in Seattle and to go 70+ innings. This is a strong pick up. Its the cost of Ford that seems way too steep.
Not average nor closer. Closer to closer though. Ideally he faces the heart of lefty bats 7th 8th inning or 9th if you don’t have a closer or he needs rest.
Wait what? That can’t be the whole trade. A middle reliever for Ford? There’s like 20 free agent relievers out there better than Ferrer. Maybe 30.
I hope we at least get another piece because ford is good enough to be a piece in a Mackenzie gore trade
Maybe no one had interest in coming to Seattle.
A trade for a reliever always felt inevitable considering the M’s only have about $15M left yo spend, abd most of that will go towards Polanco’s AAV if they are to retain him.
He was the closer after the trade deadline. A LH closer for Ford.
Better, but not cheaper. They are getting 4 years of control for Ferrer here. And since he doesn’t have gaudy save numbers, arbitration will likely not be kind to him. Unless Seattle makes him their closer at some point. And then you traded a catcher you didn’t need for your closer, so you cannot call that a loss.
Doubt there is 20 to 30 out there. If you are just looking at his era it’s fake. It should be much better in future seasons.
Not a middle reliever. Late inning arm/closer.
Don’t make the mistake of looking at his ERA, that’s a pointless stat for a reliever. Look at his FIP, it was 3.03 in 2025 (2.76 in 2024). Also, 71 Ks vs.only 16 BBs in 76 innings. Has a rocket for a left arm. Was very effective in the 2nd half until running out of gas the last week of the regular season.
There better be a big shoe dropping on this, because this looks regrettable right from the get-go…
M’s just freed up more money to use in Free Agency. Now go get us Polanco or Donovan, OR BOTH!
Thats how I would take this. They didn’t see Ford as a viable DH for 80 games, so go get someone now who can do that and get a backup catcher for cheap.
I argued with a number of people here that Ford wasn’t likely seen as a viable option to DH (which seemed to be a popular belief). He lacks power and I’m not convinced he’ll be anything more than an average hitter at the place.
But I’m higher on his defense than most. I had believed he was better off staying in AAA or traded, because playing once a week to backup Cal didn’t make a lot of sense.
Well…at least they addressed a need.
Its a shocking trade. Takes some processing time. Makes sense for both teams now. Looks like the Nats got the better end, but makes Seattle better for the next couple years without losing anything that would have helped them.
Problem is teams are thirsty for catchers and they traded someone who could headline a trade for a starting pitcher or bat for a reliever. Even if you know he can’t catch or play outfield and will never hit 20 hrs another team won’t.
Seattle had almost certainly been fielding calls & offers on Ford since Cal was extended.
We shouldn’t assume he could have netted more at this moment.
It’s also likely that Ferrer was generating interest from other teams. For all we know, this was bidding war.
Not assuming. I talked to a few people. Consensus is overpay. And that’s fine. Sometimes you have to. Can’t ignore it though.
Oh, I think it’s an overpay, too. I just don’t think Seattle could have necessarily netted much more elsewhere.
Maybe not. Depends how flexible they were. If they were set on a years of control reliever this could have been only option.
Seattle, like every team, has their list of targets. They probably have RHRPs above some southpaws, and some free agents may rank higher than other trade targets.
But Ferrer was likely their top LHRP target. The timing of it speaks volumes, but his stuff checks all the boxes Seattle typically looks for.
The list of teams that needed a potential regular catcher, more specifically, teams that could afford to be patient with a young catcher, was short. Washington and Minnesota were the only clear fits, IMO. Others, like Tampa and Philly, were questionable. The list of teams that need a backup is much longer, but how many were willing to trade a leverage reliever for a backup?
I don’t think years of control was their focus. If Ferrer had, say, two years of control, they probably would have tried to acquire him for a lesser return. I don’t think they were bent on trading Ford, I think they would have kept him in AAA if they couldn’t address a need with a targeted player they felt was worth the price.
That’s kind of the bigger point here. I don’t doubt that Seattle felt Ferrer was worth the price. and I’m sure Seattle wasn’t the only team trying to nab him.
Gabe Speier nice knowing you..
Seattle was looking to complement Speier, not replace him.
Wow. Seattle gets a bullpen arm. But what they gave up was too much. I’d be surprised if it’s all Seattle gets.
As of now, Nats get an A+, Seattle gets C= for this trade.
What’s a C=?
C minus-minus? Why not a D?
Part of a carbon bond? The beginning of the carboniFerrerous era?
I would think that Ford would bring more back than that. Top prospect for a reliever? Seems a little crazy to me.
Only a “top prospect” in the eyes of deluded Mariners fans.
And virtually every reputable prospect list. Pipeline (42), FanGraphs (43), The Athletic (50), Baseball America (72 last time I checked)…
If you didn’t value him as a top prospect, maybe you’re the one who’s deluded.
He is a consensus top-100 prospect. The more likely mistake here was how fans valued Ferrer. Those that even knew who he was, anyway.
Before everyone thinks Seattle traded a HOFer, Ford is still unproven in MLB. He may well wash out like Dustin Ackley and Evan White.
He likely will be Mike Piazza
More like a Craig biggio
There is no shot he will be like Piazza. I think he will be a high contact low power guy that will get moved to LF shortly. I don’t see a future for Ford behind the plate without drastic improvement.
This could be said of every prospect traded, ever.
And it would be correct 80-85% of the time.
I would’ve traded him for a DH/4th outfielder like Mike Morse, Jack Cust.
-Jack Zduriencik
Mike Morse had a lot of potential. But he got fat and got hurt. Too bad.
Great trade by Seattle Mariners, get another lefty reliever, only cost Harry Ford who will get more playing time with Nationals as they will suck in 2026 as it a rebuilding process they are on so let see what Harry Ford can do with more playing time.
Jerry Dipoto, is this you?
I used to date this hairdresser whose Pinto was always a mess. A real hairy Ford.
Receipts, or it never happened
Don’t love it from a value perspective. If the money saved is spent on one high-level or two good-level bats, I’ll feel better about it.
I agree on this completely. On paper it looks like an overpay by the M’s. But if this is how they are addressing the back end of their bullpen and then gonna spend somewhere else, then it will make a lot more sense in that context.
This feels like a massive overpay. I am a huge Ferrer guy but Ford seems like a steep price
April Fools….????
Not on my Bingo card for the Mariners. Jose Ferrer is 25 years old, A lefty (which the M’s need), a workhorse (#9 in the MLB in overall innings last year at 76 innings) and throws 97-100 MPH. He was the Nationals Closer but seems like not enough for Harry Ford. I was hoping for A Harry Ford/B. Lowe deal with the Rays, Who need a catcher. I hope that we are getting more back than Ferrer….A Lefty Relief Pitcher who throws 98 mPH is needed but for Ford? And are we running Mitch Garver back for $2..5-3 million or something as our back up Catcher? He does know our staff very well. The initial trade news seems light and I hope there is another player coming the M’s way in this deal…
FORD WON’T STICK AT CATCHER. Has no position, has no future. That’s baseball, Suzyn
Actually the Mariners are sending anothter player not getting one.
If garver returns fans might picket
Could they not have given the reds this type of deal…
Reds didn’t need a high prospect catcher.
They 100% do, they have one decent catching prospect and Stevenson will be gone next year and Trevino the year after that. Plus Stevenson could’ve been traded to make some salary for a real bat
Do the Reds have any high octane left handed relievers that can also close…or how about Ashcraft, would have you traded Ashcraft for Ford ???
Ashcraft is right-handed. Their best lefty reliever was probably Suter and he’s a free agent.
But Cincinnati isn’t likely looking for a top catching prospect to back up Stephenson, anyway.
Very questionable decision by the Ms front office.
BP-Someone was drinking heavily today. Hopefully he’s passed out and can’t make anymore bad decisions for a while.
Mariners fans need to accept that ford isn’t really that valued outside of our organization. I like the Trade the metrics on ferrer are bonkers
MLB valued and other national publications valued him also
Uhhhh He better be lights out…… I think this is an overpay but Mariners have been able to max out relievers in the past-and this better be that.
Wow. I am shocked there wasn’t a better offer out there.
Come on. Its not as if they traded Yogi Berra. Let us all see how this plays out. Ferrer can be maddening at times but he can also be electric. On a team like the Mainers they may be able to figure him out, Washington, on the other hand was not strong in player development. Ford may be a good prospect, but so was Ruiz and that hasnt woked out.
Like you said, the previous regime was deficient at player development. Now they’re overhauling their front office in addition to the scouts, trainers and medical personnel. So the fact that they were able to leverage Ferrer into an obvious overpay bodes well for their ability to develop Ford. Just my hot take.
Isn’t the new GM like 35 years old?? Old Trader Jerry has been around the block a few times. I know who I would trust in that trade transaction.
Definitely, you trust the new guy…..Jerry has proven time and time again that he is a great draft guy but horrible at roster construction
Check out what all the young NFL coaches are doing ignorant xxxxx
None of Ferrer’s stats or metrics justify this trade. He’s pre-arb-eligible, so he’s cheap, but that’s about it. Ford could have (should have) been part of a bigger deal for a bat at 2B or 3B, or even a better LHP (Matt Strahm). I would have re-signed Caleb Ferguson before trading for Ferrer. Now M’s have to fill the backup C role. Bad grade for Jerry on this one.
Nats get a potential starting C out of the deal, so they did well.
We have ben williamson, colt emerson, cole young to round out the infield with Naylor. Why would we trade for a infield player? We have one more year of JP.
A hard throwing lefty that is pre arbitration that has a high groundball rating with a sinker that is 97.2 mph for one prospective catcher and starting pitcher that was drafted this year.
Id take this deal.
As someone who’s aware of the player we acquired… SPEIER is Twice as good as this Guy… he’s ALL Fastball and panics Nats defintely Swindled M’s in this trade by FAR
Agree with everything you wrote
Oops meant reply to zoinkssxxxxx
Don’t agree with anything from Jack Z xxxxxxx post
Isn’t trading in a Ferrer for a Ford a downgrade?
Never seen Ford vs Ferrer. If motivated Ford can be awesome.
Wait WTH 😂😂
Wow. For Ford? And they added another prospect too? I was greedily hoping the Cardinals could get Ford in a deal for Donovan/Romero and re-route him to a catching-needy team, but he apparently doesn’t have that type of value.
They could of dealt ford because they are going to aquire one the cards young catchers…one that is still a couple years away from the bigs… Donovan and a young catching prospect….I thought they would go Donovan and jojo Romero…maybe they want Donovan and ferrer….and also liked one of the cards young catching prospects better than Ford….guess we wait and see…I still think Donovan is going to Seattle…
Dipoto has done something there. I wish he and scioscia could have gotten along. In a past life jerry had Mike beheaded. Dipoto gets good relievers.
Seattle is sending another SPer to Washington Isaac Lyon. Not a big name but there has to be more coming back. I always thought they needed to trade Ford but to give 2 players away for him is too much.
Raleigh gets hurt you won’t be thinking we always needed to trade ford
Ford is a better player than Ruiz.
Love this! Maybe the Nats will resign Finnegan to close.
Maybe but also the Nats don’t need a lights out closer.
Lights out closer he is not
Harry Ford has no shot in Seattle and like most MLB, they all over value there prospects..
Cal is the starter and mariners could very well sign some veterans guys to minor league contracts to compete for backup.. No thanks on old man Garver
Cal needs to CATCH LESS… he always FADES end of the Year…
Seems like Toboni thinks their development gurus can do something with Lyon too.
Jason Varitek 2.0
Classic CHEAP Mariners ownership 💯 plenty of power arms available if they’d OPEN their CHECKBOOK… watch FORD win NL ROY in Classic Mariners Fashion… SMH
Well he wasn’t doing it with the Mariners anyway so who cares tbh.
Henry Ford is still alive? Oh wait…
Jonah Heim coming the Mariners way? He has been a Mariners slayer at times and he is a switch hitter….
I see the Mariners are back to their old ways of getting fleeced in trades.
Y’all jump on these writers way too much. When you try to get the news out ASAP, mistakes will happen and they constantly tweak their articles. Holy jeez.
Anyhoo, Ford was blocked here, is it an overpay for Ferrer, maybe? But the dude closed from the left side so that’s nothing to scoff at. Makes the M’s bullpen that much better. Still…probably an overpay, but I get it here.
Too much emphasis on being first these days.
It pays the bills tbh, I get it.
The interest in Ferrer isn’t surpring. They wanted a lefty, they like good sinkers, and he can be used in leverage situations.
But the arb years for Ford? Seattle must be confident they can make adjustments and get real dominance from Ferrer.
Ford’s lack of power was going to limit his trade value, but I would have expected more than this.
Ferrer good great as is
I agree, but I still think there’s more to unlock.
Agree
Also a little shocked because the Mariners seemed to have invested in Ford at the end of this past season and brought him up to be a part of things in the playoff run in September and to seemingly get assimilated for the 2026 season….Maybe they had some concerns after seeing him everyday in BP, fielding practice, etc.
I wish the reds were in on him. Move on from Stevenson
I expect them to because of his salary and they already extended Trevino. Then they will have to go trade for a catcher again because their only prospect is in A ball. Classic hindsight of the current management.
I am shocked they valued Ford so low…..I hope Raleigh doesn’t get hurt. So now we have some retread catching once a week when Ford could catch often and DH Raleigh
Maybe LH relief pitchers who throw 97mph with low walks, and contractual control are valued much higher by front offices, than by keyboard fans.
Welp, now I’m worried about next year’s M’s team.
You’re worried now that they’ve acquired a guy that improves the team and fills a big need a5 the cost of a guy who would be a backup next season. I get the concern on trading a quality prospect but let’s not go overboard
This guy???
cdn.britannica.com/13/77113-004-56996D81/Jose-Ferr…
Crazy overpay for a reliever IMHO. Bullpen arms are so damn volatile and to give up one of the best C prospects in the game is crazy. Ford is probably overrated yes, but that’s still a lot to give up here.
Whoa! Overpay. Wonder why.
Mariners are in win-now mode, flags fly forever. They don’t care if Ford will eventually be a major league regular, they just want to win this year and compete with the AL East teams.
The Cubs did something similar in 2016, trading Gleyber Torres (who was the #1 prospect in MLB in some ratings) at the deadline to rent Aroldis Chapman.
I fear this guy is not quite Chapman
Doesn’t have to be. They’ve got him for years to come. Chapman was a pure rental. A rental that worked out very well
I actually wanted the Cubs to look into acquiring Ferrer, but obviously the price was too high.
Seattle should of asked for jo jo in a package with Donovan from st louis …could of gotten both pieces in one deal…then Seattle would of been set and ready to go…
Who’s to say they didn’t?
Cardinals already have a few young catchers. They want pitching for Donovan or at least a good OF
Seattle loves trading future All Star catchers for one reliever.
Luke Stevenson will be better.
The M’s have to be very high on Stevenson to make this trade…
Agreed, at least defensively he will be. Granted it’ll be 2028 at best
He isn’t that good as a catcher actually.
I like Ferrer, but it’s still kinda tough to part with Harry. Wouldn’t be shocked at all if he becomes their franchise catcher while we get another Gregory Santos.
I almost forgot about him. Yeah another needs a little work reliever
Wow so now we need to spend $$$ on a backup catcher, instead of league minimum??!! I was big on Ford and Cal being his Mentor. That would have been the best Catching duo in MLB for years!!!
Back up C’s are not expensive. They probably will have 3 non rosters at spring training..
Sometimes you trade a potential leading man for a supporting actor. Some of you act like the Mariners should have got George Clooney for him and that a Ferrer wasn’t good enough.
@Joe
What ya expect from M’s fans. They win playoff series they think they’re the 2025./2026 Dodgers roll eye’s
They need to be reminded that they only made the post season because the Astros were crippled by injuries.
What a dumb comment. Mariners would’ve been in playoffs even if Astros won the division. Plus the Mariners had Gilbert, Kirby, Miller, Woo, and Robles out for extended periods of time.
Total Tool comment by Astros_Fan. The Mariners had Gilbert, Miller and Kirby out for two months each. Woo was out at the end of the year and Robles missed over four months but I did love and still enjoy when I think about it, the Mariners sweeping the Astros in Houston in late September. What a butt kicking.
Astros_fan you’re better than that…
What? This is probably the stupidest comment I’ve read all night
Mariners had majority of starters injured
Astros were missing 4/5ths of their starting rotation plus Yordan Alvarez and Parades. Robles isn’t even worth Parades let alone Parades + Yordan
They had all those players back when they got swept by the Mariners at home in late September….
One series doesn’t make up for most of the season. Also they didn’t have Hader that series either. Doesn’t matter Blue Jays knocked them out still Mariners 0 Astros 2 but I hope you enjoyed a sweep in September
I really did enjoy that sweep.
Congrats. You’ll feel even better if the Mariners can ever win a World Series. Or just make a World Series even
If they do, it will be without cheating like the Houston Garbage Cans did.
Apparently you missed the 2022 season. You should google it, great season of baseball
This comment is funny to me, because José Ferrer (Mr. Rosemary Clooney) was George Clooney’s uncle.
I knew somebody would pick up on it.
Ferrer will more than likley contribute more than Ford would have in 2026
Maybe, I could of seen ford catch 70+ games allowing dumper to get rest and DH.
If that was the case ford would have been more of a factor than some 7-8th inning dude.
Either way it’s about value and the M’s must see more value than I do. Heck they even added an additional pitching prospect. Perhaps there is another player or prospect coming back to the M’s. Catchers that can hit are hard to find.
How does that Guns N Roses song go..
.
Traded to the Mariners by seven On the waiver wire by nine
But that old man is real bad Pitcher
Gonna kick him down the line
Yowsa
This post was just the type of nonsense humor I needed to make me laugh today. So I honestly appreciate it!
Although I do hope that your assessment of Ferrer end up being wrong and he is a big time BP addition. Time will tell.
Invent a car just to get traded
I seem to be in a minority, but Seattle just traded a totally blocked player for one that they can use. Ferrer has good stuff. I’m betting that Mariners fans are going to love this trade by the All-star break. This kid really suppresses home runs, too. At 4 years of low salaries, instead of 10 mil+ a year.
Imagine if we had him in against the blue jays and instead of a home run it was a ground ball.
As a Mariners fan, this is a tough one. I was frustrated with Dan Wilson for not giving Harry more playing time. I am happy that I was at the game against the Dodgers when he got his first MLB hit. I’m glad he will actually to play everyday with the Nationals.
I am a new m fan (only 5 years) but I can’t believe how the fan base cuts Wilson so much slack. Ford was the least grievous of his mistakes. Bastardo costing most likely a world series win. Bullpen was mismanaged the entire season. No sports town writer even comments
Sorry the bandwagon is full.
No wonder Seattle has never made the WS. They just got fleeced hard lol
This is a win know window with a some what limited budget Good overall move for the now with the dwindling amounts of relievers available. Fills a need and gives more budget for Polo or whatever else is in the work. Also fans tend to overvalue prospects considerably, me included.
Given the astounding failure rate of prospects, I never understood the high market value that teams attached to them.
Now, in a short period of time, we’ve seen two highly valued youngsters…Ford and Rodriguez…traded for what on the surface appears to be underwhelming return.
Perhaps some teams have begun to correct a market inefficiency.
I watched Moulin Rouge at a drive-in theater in a 1953 Country Squire station wagon.
Comments like yours cause baseball fans to hope filters for nonsense like this can be built in
I just went down a bbref rabbit hole because of Brandon Lyon. I couldn’t remember why he was traded back to the Red Sox in 2003 nine days after being dealt. It turns out he failed his physical in Pittsburgh, and they worked out a separate trade for Jeff Suppan in addition to reversing thenoriginal trade.
The old Anastacio Martinez trade! That’s how the Pirates got Freddy Sanchez! Would have been so weird to imagine Mike Gonzalez in a Red Sox uniform all his career too.
Maybe the Mariners aren’t sold on Ford sticking as a catcher. That or they love Ferrer or some combination of those factors
Ferrer’s issue is he doesn’t strike out all that many batters. I like my late innings guys to strike people out. Otherwise you start to rely on babip luck. Which then you get a 3.5 expected results but a 4.4 actual result.
It seems kind of odd that he doesn’t strikeout more batters. The stuff is there, so maybe this is why the M’s wanted him this badly. I’ll be surprised if he doesn’t turn into a dominant setup man.
Brash from the right, Ferrer from the left… Nothing but net!
You don’t trade a top prospect in hopes you can fix a reliever
A solid baseball trade for both. Glad to see Washington picking a direction.
I am kinda of predicting a James wood to dodgers trade
Nationals made out like bandits
Oh, man. We usually see eye-to-eye on these. Maybe we will have to come back and look at this one later.
@Ignorant Son-of-a-b I am very high on Harry Ford. He is going to be a great player, trust me
Ferrer WAS the Nats closer for the last 2 months last season, putting up 11 Saves, so maybe they’re over-paying for that. At least that means he has the potential to be our nasty Lefty set-up guy in the 8th Inning. Better than a Lefty middle reliever.
Not really with his below avg strikeout numbers.
Love this move. I’ve always thought highly of Ford.
Team control until 2029!!! We needed a LH This year. We got one and for cheap!! We can use the money elsewhere!! Good Vibes only!!
The Seattle Stoopids. Hurts, a lot.
If he can be become a high leverage arm out of the pen, then everyone will forget about the price. Mariners are the right team to continue to develop him.
Yes trade a tip prospect and hope you can develop a reliever
Ok. Stop playing with your tip and learn how to spell if you want to be a pissy little boy in your responses. We get it. You don’t like the trade. None of us do.
Lmao, who sounds pissy.
You with your response to my first comment. Like I made the trade or something lol. You didn’t like that I was trying to be optimistic so you got pissy.
Sodo- my point which wasn’t pissy at all was to your comment about trade for a guy then develop him. That is a thing but not much of a thing when trading a top prospect. If they traded a couple of mid prospects then that would be more in line.
I don’t think simm response was pissy. You’re the one who said “hope you can develop “ ………what??
Simm lets come back and look at this one at the trade deadline. I bet you if Seattle had hung on to Ford his value would have dropped precipitously to no longer even being a Top 100 prospect at the trade deadline. Mariners are selling high here. Ford has no position. Bat too light for DH.
SOB- well I’d assume he wouldn’t be a prospect by the deadline either way. Made some sense to put him on the roster in hopes of holding his own and giving dumper some more days off from catching.
I don’t see this as they sold high on him. His value has been around what it is now for a couple of years. It’s not like he came out of nowhere, had a big year and was traded.
It sure looks like the Mariners wanted a big lefty arm that wasn’t making any money this year. So they paid the prospect price rather than the dollar price. Which is fine and happens all the time. My issues if I even have one is the guy they got back. I’m not a fan of late inning relievers with minor power stroke out rates. This deal just feels like it’s a little short on the M’s side. Now maybe it’s not we shall see.
To your point only time will tell.
I really don’t like this trade. The Mariners have failed with reliever trades like this one far too often. Ford is a smart player, and looked to me like he’d stick at catcher. (If he had to move off catcher, he’s athletic enough to actually get good at another position.)
Nats fleeced the M’s.
Four years control
A+++++++++++ Washington.
A top 50 prospect for a reliever are you serious.
D Seattle
4 years of a decent K rate excellent walk rate and absolutely fantastic ground ball rate. Elite weapon out of bullpen. Not elite closer though. K rate not big enough. Top 50 prospect even if you don’t desperately need it is a expensive price. It helps them right now. Just very expensive to get. Boston traded a similar level prospect and another and go 2 cheap years of one of the best pitchers in baseball. Baltimore got Burnes for 2 much lesser prospects.
$$ for Burnes as well. When you take money you give less prospects
Not fair imo but true
Not decent k rate. A below avg k rate
It’s almost 22 percent. Average was over 22 but I don’t believe it’s made it to 23 yet. Guess it depends on your definition of decent. Mine is around average which is a bad definition because most guys around average or most guys period don’t have a 60 percent groundball rate. So his K rate is really great. Combine his walk rate and great addition. D sounds bad but it’s a passing grade. Ford is expandable. Did they have to give another prospect as well? Apparently. That’s fine. I’m just not going to praise them. Willing to trade a top 100 prospect you’re going to be able to get relievers fairly easily.
Wouldn’t you think Jerry would have asked every catching-needy team in the league if they had an interest in Ford and they all said sorry, we don’t project him as a big league catcher, may I help you with anything else? But you know who Jerry was able to convince …a naive brand new 35 year old GM in D.C. We might live out here in the boondocks in Seattle but we know how to value our own prospects.
SOB- idk if he would have done that. In the case it doesn’t look like he was shopping ford for the best overall return. This looks like he was shopping ford for the best lefty reliever being paid leave min with potential. To a team that needed a catcher and was likely not a contender who would trade such a reliever. That makes the list of teams much shorter.
Now maybe no other team besides the Nats view his as a catcher. Perhaps no other team that was interested in him had a hard throwing lefty being paid nothing. Neither of us know how he shopped him but we do know the result.
AI- the K rate is the K rate. If you want to say he has a great GB rate then okay.
That has nothing to do with his K rate. If you want to say his K rate to go along with his GB rate is great…then okay again.
I’d much rather have a higher K rate and a little lower GB rate. K’s don’t arent subject to babip. Hence the reason K’s are so valuable especially late in games. You want to take away as much bad luck away as you can.
Good move for both squads. Win-win for both sides.
Why is everyone acting like Harry Ford is a proven big league hitter?
Wasn’t too happy at first when I read the news but let’s move on.
Yeah it’s been 12 hours already
Jose Ferrer is a 25 year old, left-handed closer with three years of control remaining.. Those don’t come cheap. Ford was a liability for the M’s. He would take DH at bats that others need and requires Cal come off the field. He was destined to be traded at some point. Might as well get what the M’s need.
Closer for two months. Let’s not act like he was some proven closer.
Awww C’mon Simm you are sounding like you really want this one to fail.
The vast majority of M fans are questioning this trade. People keep talking about our need to win a World Series. What happens if Cal gets hurt
SOB- not at all. I’m a fan of either team. I’m just giving my view on this trade.
The facts are he closed for two months. Little light to crown him as a closer. He won’t be closing on the M’s.
My only negative opinion on this deal for the M’s is you got a reliever….which they needed. A guy who was pitching the end of games for the Nats. Cool, I am just not a fan of a late inning reliever that doesn’t strike out many people. So I feel like the cost was too high for a guy who doesn’t do that. This dude looks more like Wandy Peralta, who is fine but
Not someone I want pitching late inning reliever games all that often. Certainly not in my eyes worth a top prospect.
Just my opinion, I don’t hate the trade. I do like it better for the Nats. Worth the risk to see if Ford can be a high OBP catcher with decent speed. Half the league seems to not have a catcher that can hit for crap. Maybe Ford won’t either or maybe Ford can’t catch for crap.
What would it cost in prospect capital to acquire someone proven like Andres Munoz? Exactly! Even if available a proven closer is unaffordable. This kid still has upside at 25 years old. He could be a fixture on the team for 10 years.
Not destined at all. If he hits he covers both DH at bats against lefties and capably catches enough games to save Cal wear and tear. Does a reunion with GARVER provide that?
Oh and what if Cal gets hurt
Yet another baffling Mariners trade throughout the years.
Sounds like it’s a precursor to a larger deal with the catcher heavy Cardinals.
The M’s should give free agent Danny Jansen a call. He is an offense first RH bat. He should be available for less than the $12M he and Garver made last year.
Ford would of been an interesting trade for the Phillies if they can’t re-sign JT. Oh well now.
Where in the OF? He is a catcher. Are you sitting down Randy’s superior defense to get him some games? If that is how you are thinking, put the blue dress on and get on your knees and finish what Hilary didn’t do
I don’t know if any of you saw this, but two days ago Baseball America picked catcher Luke Stevenson as the Mariners breakout candidate for 2026.
Two questions:
1) Why did the Mariners just give away a good catching prospect for a reliever?
2) Why does this story have 300 comments??
Because about 250 of them are unhappy with the trade, and rightfully so. Cal better not get hurt.
Good trade.
The Ms took Ford with the 12th pick in the draft. He’s done nothing since to suggest that was a mistake. Perhaps you trade him because you already have the best catcher in baseball. But: 1) a good backup catcher is worth at least as much as a seventh inning reliever (in 76 1/3 well pitched innings last season, Ferrar produced 0.1 bWAR); 2) before trading him, it’s worth establishing that he may be more than a backup catcher, he only had eight PAs and fourteen innings at catcher last season. Raleigh’s bat is strong enough to be an everyday DH, he’s less likely to get hurt there and it wouldn’t hurt him (or the Ms) one bit to share more time behind the plate. Knowing what he’s become, and what he could be, you’d never have drafted Ferrar at # 12 (he was an International free agent, but you get the point). If Ferrar is the best they could get for Ford they should have held on a little longer.
His value plummets the longer they hang on to him.
SOB- you really don’t seem to value Ford. He is a 23 year old catcher. His value would have held another year. It’s not like they got some great value for him now.
If he caught 70-80 games this year and did well his value could even rise.
Now if he sucked then yes his value would have gone down. You can say that about every prospect. One bad season can seriously tank a prospects value…2 bad ones and you are worth nearly nothing.
I’m all for trading prospects for proven major leaguers. The value he got back feels light. As Bronx said at no point was Ferrar value greater than Fords…until this trade when the M’s added a second prospect.
If you’re in the post season, a backup catcher to Raleigh isn’t going to play at all. A good LH reliever could be extremely valuable.
This blows. Hate it.
Can’t wait to see how the Ms and Jays do against each other. Never was a reason for Ms-BJs to be must-watch, but there sure is now
Not up to me, but as an M’s fan, I like the move. Given that there will likely be a work stoppage in 2027, this is the year to go for it. Push in the chips, boys. Harrison Ford would have been great, probably, but Ferrer is close to great now and working with a better staff and a better stadium (for him), this was a surprising, but necessary move. Backup catchers are important, but with only one lefty in the pen, the team would have been sunk.
But this can’t be it. Go get Ketel Marte, Brendan Donovan, Steven Kwan please. And another reliever (RH or LH) wouldn’t hurt, either. If the Guardians would take Montes and Cole Young (and a couple of lottery tickets), both of whom have great POTENTIAL, but are still prospects, then let’s get Kwan and Josh’s brother Bo. If the Cardinals need MLB-ready pitching, then the cost for Logan Evans has to be no less than Donovan and an AA-level starter like Ixan Henderson or else just don’t make the deal and bring back Polo instead for one year with a player opt-out.
Ford and Gore to the sox in a blockbuster involving Duran +
The trade is better than folks think. Ford is overvalued, and Ferrer is undervalued. If we had Ferrer last year, we’d have been in the World Series.
Now trade Gabe Speier fresh off a career year please and thank you
Package Speier 2.41 era and Castillo 3.54 era for ?
Peripherals don’t matter if you give up a lot of runs. After 142 appearances this guy gives up a lot of runs. Trade a top 50 catching prospect for a guy who gives up too many runs and hopefully after a melt down the fans will say well at least he didn’t walk anyone today.
I don’t get the whines and screams about overpay. I think people are overreacting to inflated ops #s in the elevated western aaa cities.
Compared to his league the past 2 years, ford hit 28% better. Going back 8-12 years to get some comps, found 10 comparable-age milb catchers w 800+ pa. Two became above avg, nothing special 110- 118 HITTERS ( not doing defense here), Wilson Contreras and Mitch Garver. Plus tom murphy became avg. Hitter. And also 7 guys who either didn’t make it or did based on defense but don’t hit. So 30% chance of being meh-nice player, not such a value.
Comps say he probably wont hit well enough to dh much. So he’s a backup C on a good team.
Those who hate the trade are overestimating Fords offense bc of hitting inflation in high elev parks.
As a Nats fan I love this deal. Apart from his injury problems, it was pretty clear Ruiz wasn’t the C Rizzo thought he was getting when he gave him that lengthy contract. Both his offense and defense weren’t good. There were backup C with better pitch framing metrics, and even with ABS that’s still going to be a part of the game.
The problem for Taboni now is, what do you do with Ruiz? His bat absolutely doesn’t justify a move to DH or 1B, and his defense really doesn’t justify keeping him as a starting C either. They might just be stuck with a backup C making $5..3 million, which jumps to $7.3 million in 2028 and $9.3 million in 2029 & 2030.
Unfortunately his defense doesn’t justify keeping him as backup catcher either. I’m guessing they give Ruiz this season to see if he can come back from the concussions and demonstrate anything either at the plate or behind it. But they may be cutting their losses on his contract by season’s end.
Obviously, we really don’t know about the prospect but it does seem like the Mariners gave up too much. We will eventually find out.
This further solidifies my opinion that organizations don’t value catchers as highly as the ranking sites do. If Ford was a top 50 SP or 3B it would be a massive over pay for a relief pitcher. But for a catcher? That’s ok.
Obviously, the team did their homework on Ferrer. They see a future closer. The kid is only 25, throws 97, has a good mix of pitches and a little high leverage experience.. Andres Munoz was coming off TJ surgery when the M’s acquired him for Austin Nolo et al. Munoz grew into the closer role. This kid has time to do the same.
Harry Ford was not going to contribute much to the M’s this year or in the future. Cal will play. You don’t sit 60 HR’s coming from your MVP. If it takes Ford to get Ferrer so be it. The M’s gave up nothing they needed and have now solved their biggest weakness.
I’m still not gonna sell the team or invest in any free agents. National limbo forever!