TAMPA BAY, FL: According to Marc Topkin of the TB Times, the Tampa Bay Rays have traded star outfielder Randy Arozarena to the Seattle Mariners. Francys Romero, initially broke the story.
The three minor league players the Rays will acquire in exchange are OF Aidan Smith, RHP Brody Hopkins, and a player to be named later. After designating Ty France for assignment earlier this week, Seattle had a space on their 40-man roster, so no further action was required.
For more than four years, Arozarena had a successful tenure in Tampa Bay. During the 2019–20 offseason, the Rays acquired him from the Cardinals in exchange for sending St. Louis top pitching prospect Matthew Liberatore.
Despite making a fleeting appearance in the Major League Baseball, Arozarena's real breakthrough as a star came during the 2020 postseason. With 20 games played, he blasted 10 home runs, earning MVP status for the ALCS and assisting the Rays in reaching the World Series.
From 2021 to 2023, Arozarena made 445 appearances in games. With 63 home runs in just more over 1900 plate appearances, he hit .264/.349/.443. Based on wRC+, he produced 26 percentage points more than the league average, ranking him among the finest left fielders in the game.
Arozarena's recognition and dependability caused his arbitration pay to rise swiftly. That increased speculation that the low-paying Rays may move him in the previous offseason.
The season stats for Arozarena are unremarkable. With 409 plate appearances under his belt, he is hitting .211/.318/.394 with 15 home runs. That would be his lowest career figures, and just slightly better than average.
It appears reasonable to consider his early-season troubles more of an exception than a concerning trend, given his overall record and recent form. If the 29-year-old's career production could be reached, it would be a huge boost for Seattle's lineup, which is hitting .216/.298/.362 so far this year.
The primary cause of the M's losing their 10-game lead in the AL West is that only the White Sox have scored less runs this month.
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