Mariners acquire right-handed hitter Taylor Ward from Orioles
Published 11:01 am Monday, August 3, 2026
The Seattle Mariners on Monday acquired outfielder Taylor Ward from the Baltimore Orioles. In exchange, the Orioles received a trio of right-handed pitchers in Alex Hoppe, Harrison Kreiling and Brock Moore.
The Mariners confirmed the deal in an email to The Herald.
Lineup help had been an urgent need for the Mariners, and they took a step toward addressing it with Ward, who is slashing .246/.383/.346 with seven homers and 30 RBI. His 110 OPS+ makes him an above-average offensive producer within a Mariners lineup that ranks 28th in runs (454) and 27th in OPS (.689).
After launching a career-high 36 home runs last season with the Los Angeles Angels, Ward morphed into a less potent but still useful on-base machine in Baltimore. He entered July with more walks than anyone outside of Nick Kurtz. His chase rate has plunged below Juan Soto territory.
The 32-year-old also went into the month with just five home runs, and aside from the walks, Ward had struggled offensively since he ended April with an .881 OPS. Still, in a league with a shortage of effective right-handed-hitting outfielders, Ward offers a higher floor than most. From 2021 to 2025, he tallied 98 home runs. In left field, he remains an adequate defender.
He also comes without the cost of a multi-year commitment. Ward is earning $12.175 million in his final year of arbitration eligibility.
Hoppe, 27, has been a regular on the shuttle between Seattle and Triple-A Tacoma. He is 0-1 with a 5.79 ERA in 28 innings pitched for the Mariners this season.
Brock Moore pitched for the Single-A Everett AquaSox this season before a promotion to Double-A Arkansas on May 26. The 26-year-old went 1-2 with a 9.64 ERA for Everett in 2025 before showing promise this season, lowering his ERA to 1.13 across 16 innings for the Frogs. A seventh-round draft pick by the Mariners in 2024 out of the University of Oregon, Moore struggled with Arkansas this season, compiling a 3-3 record with a 5.56 ERA in 18 appearances (22 2/3 innings).
Riddled with injuries since being selected by Seattle in the 17th round of the 2024 MLB Draft, Kreiling has made eight total appearances in the Mariners Rookie League and Low-A Inland Empire. The 24-year-old did not allow an earned run in his one outing with Inland Empire, allowing two hits and a walk over two innings on July 28.
Herald writer Aaron Coe contributed to this report.
