Mariners acquire reliever from the Orioles.
The Orioles and Mariners confirmed a deal late Wednesday evening. Seattle acquired reliever Mike Baumann and catcher Michael Pérez in exchange for younger catcher Blake Hunt, who the Orioles optioned to Triple-A Norfolk. Baltimore has designated Baumann for assignment over the weekend. Hunt and Baumann will each be on their new teams’ 40-man rosters. Pérez was signed as a minor leaguer and will not be added to the 40-man roster. The Seattle Mariners’ roster is full, while the Baltimore Orioles have 39 players.
Baumann switches teams for the first time in his career. Baltimore drafted the right-hander in the third round of 2017. He spent the most of his minor league career as a starting pitcher before transitioning to the bullpen in 2022. Baumann has shown solid success in recent seasons. He pitched a career-high 64 2/3 innings with a 3.76 ERA last season and has allowed 3.44 earned runs per nine through 17 outings this year.
While Baumann’s run prevention numbers have been strong, his strikeout and walk rates are average. In 2023, he had a league-average strikeout rate of 22.3% and a high walk rate of 12.1%. This season, his strikeout rate has dropped to 19.5% in 18 1/3 innings, but his walk rate remains above average at 11%. Baumann’s swinging strike rate of 9.9% is a few points lower than the league average for relievers.
That undoubtedly influenced Baltimore’s decision to DFA him, but the more immediate reason was a lack of roster flexibility. Baumann is out of options, so the Orioles could not send him to the minors. He was one of six Baltimore relievers who cannot be optioned, and the two who can be sent down (Yennier Cano and Keegan Akin) are far too valuable to leave the MLB bullpen.
Seattle has four relievers who are out of options, but they can send down Eduard Bazardo or Cody Bolton to fill in for Baumann in the bullpen. Despite his lack of significant swing-and-miss numbers, he should strengthen their middle relief corps. The Jacksonville product has induced ground balls at a strong 46.4% rate. He consistently throws a knuckle curve and slider in addition to his fastball, which averages north of 96 MPH. Baumann has between one and two years of major league experience. He is under contract for four more seasons after this one and will not be eligible for arbitration until the offseason of 2025-26.
The Mariners liked Baumann enough to trade Hunt, who is a more intriguing player than what teams usually get for someone they designated for assignment. He was originally drafted by the Padres in the second round and was traded to the Rays as part of the Blake Snell deal. Hunt reached Triple-A in the Tampa Bay farm system. Despite a.256/.331/.484 line in 2023, the Rays declined to add him to their 40-man roster last autumn. Rather than let him go for nothing in minor league free agency, Tampa Bay traded him to Seattle for recent draftee Tatem Levins.
Seattle signed Hunt to the 40-man roster to keep him in the organization. The 25-year-old has spent the season at Triple-A Tacoma, where he has made an excellent start.In 86 plate appearances, he has a 293/.372/.533 batting line. Hunt has now hit four home runs and struck out in just 11.6% of his plate appearances. He ranks after Adley Rutschman and James McCann on the organizational depth chart. Hunt could make his Major League Baseball debut this season. Even if he spends the remainder of the season at Norfolk, he may compete for next year’s backup catcher job if the Orioles allow McCann to leave in free agency.
Pérez, a 31-year-old journeyman, signed a minor league contract with Baltimore during the winter. In 21 games with Norfolk, he is hitting.221/.294/.325. Pérez has competed in portions of six MLB seasons and has a.179/.248/.306 batting line at the highest level. Including him in the transaction allows Seattle to send an experienced, glove-first veteran to Tacoma once Hunt leaves. He ranks after Cal Raleigh and Seby Zavala on the organizational depth chart.
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