The Orioles and Mariners introduced a commerce late Wednesday night. Seattle acquired reliever Mike Baumann and catcher Michael Pérez in alternate for youthful catcher Blake Hunt, whom the O’s have optioned to Triple-A Norfolk. Baltimore had designated Baumann for project over the weekend. Hunt and Baumann will every occupy spots on their new groups’ 40-man rosters. Pérez was on a minor league contract and won’t assume a 40-man spot. Seattle’s roster is at capability, whereas the O’s rely is as much as 39.
Baumann modifications groups for the primary time in his profession. Baltimore drafted the right-hander within the third spherical again in 2017. A beginning pitcher for many of his minor league tenure, he kicked to the bullpen in 2022. Baumann has turned in stable outcomes over the previous couple of seasons. He tossed a career-high 64 2/3 innings of three.76 ERA ball final season and has allowed 3.44 earned runs per 9 via 17 appearances this 12 months.
Whereas Baumann’s run prevention marks have been good, his strikeout and stroll profile are middling. He had a league common of twenty-two.3% strikeout proportion with a lofty 12.1% stroll charge in 2023. His strikeout charge is all the way down to 19.5% over 18 1/3 innings this season, whereas his 11% stroll proportion stays increased than common. Baumann’s 9.9% swinging strike charge is a few factors beneath the league mark for relievers.
That definitely contributed to Baltimore’s determination to DFA him, however the extra instant driver was an absence of roster flexibility. Baumann is out of choices, so the O’s couldn’t ship him to the minors. He was one among six Baltimore relievers who can’t be optioned, and two who could be despatched down (Yennier Cano and Keegan Akin) have been far too beneficial to take out of the MLB bullpen.
Seattle has 4 out-of-options relievers of their very own, however they will ship down one among Eduard Bazardo or Cody Bolton to plug Baumann into the bullpen. Regardless of missing large swing-and-miss tallies, he ought to deepen their center aid group. The Jacksonville product has induced ground-balls at a stable 46.4% clip. He averages north of 96 MPH on his fastball and mixes in a knuckle curve and slider with regularity. Baumann has between one and two years of main league service. He’s controllable for 4 seasons past the present marketing campaign and received’t be eligible for arbitration till the 2025-26 offseason.
The Mariners favored Baumann sufficient to half with Hunt, who’s a extra intriguing participant than groups usually land for somebody they’d designated for project. A former second-round choose of the Padres, he went to the Rays as a part of the Blake Snell blockbuster. Hunt topped out at Triple-A within the Tampa Bay farm system. Regardless of a .256/.331/.484 exhibiting in 2023, the Rays determined to not add him to their 40-man roster final fall. Reasonably than watch him depart for nothing in minor league free company, Tampa Bay flipped him to Seattle for current draftee Tatem Levins.
Seattle added Hunt to the 40-man to maintain him within the group. The 25-year-old has spent the season in Triple-A Tacoma, the place he’s out to a superb .293/.372/.533 begin in 86 plate appearances. Hunt has already related on 4 homers whereas hanging out in solely 11.6% of his journeys to the plate. He slots in behind Adley Rutschman and James McCann on the organizational depth chart. There’s an opportunity Hunt makes his MLB debut sooner or later this 12 months. Even when he spends the remainder of the season in Norfolk, he may compete for subsequent 12 months’s backup catching job if the Orioles let McCann depart in free company.
Pérez is a 31-year-old journeyman who signed a minor league cope with Baltimore over the offseason. He’s hitting .221/.294/.325 over 21 video games in Norfolk. Pérez has appeared in elements of six MLB campaigns and owns a .179/.248/.306 slash on the highest degree. Together with him within the deal permits Seattle to ship an skilled, glove-first veteran to Tacoma after Hunt’s departure. He’s behind Cal Raleigh and Seby Zavala on the organizational depth chart.
