BALTIMORE — In a move that appears to sacrifice defense and bullpen depth in order to add a veteran backup catcher, the Seattle Mariners acquired Welington Castillo on Tuesday morning from the Chicago Cubs.
In return, the Mariners surrendered right-handed reliever Yoervis Medina, who served as a key element in their bullpen over the last two-plus seasons prior to his May 3 demotion to Triple-A Tacoma.
“We hate to give up Yoervis,” general manager Jack Zduriencik said. “He’s a guy you always think could become pretty good. But given the state of catching, we thought it was time to make a move to shore up that position.”
Zduriencik pointed to a large number of starting catchers on the disabled list as a reason to acquire Castillo, who spent the two previous seasons as the Cubs’ starter.
The Mariners optioned catcher Jesus Sucre, a defensive specialist, to Tacoma after Wednesday’s game against the Orioles.
Manager Lloyd McClendon confirmed Castillo will serve as the backup to catcher Mike Zunino, who has started 32 of the club’s first 38 games.
“His playing time will be predicated on Zunino’s performance,” McClendon said. “I mean, we’re not fooling anybody here, Mike Zunino is our everyday catcher.”
Castillo, 28, is batting just .163 this season in limited action but has a .252 average and a .320 on-base percentage over his six-year career. He also has a strong arm — he has thrown out 30 percent of base-stealers in his career.
But Castillo also carries a reputation for poor pitch-calling and pitch-framing. Those deficiencies prompted the Cubs to acquire Miguel Montero in an off-season trade with Arizona and sign free-agent David Ross.
“A lot of players have deficiencies in some areas,” Zduriencik countered. “You bring a player onboard because the skill set that he has — and in this case, the experience that he has — is an asset.”
The Mariners also appear to be adding payroll.
Castillo is making $2.1 million this year and will be eligible after the season for arbitration. He is also out of options and on track to become a free agent after the 2017 season.
In contrast, Medina, 26, is making $527,300 this season and can still be optioned to the minors through the end of this season.
Medina could be eligible after this season for arbitration, depending on time spent in the majors, but he isn’t likely to be eligible for free agency until after the 2018 season.
“I don’t think we would have made this trade,” McClendon said, “if we didn’t think we had depth in our relievers, particularly right-handed relievers who we believe are not going to be set-up type of guys.”
The Mariners also made the move in hopes of boosting an attack that, entering Tuesday, had scored fewer runs than all but two of American League’s 15 clubs.
Zunino and Sucre, combined, are batting just .165 with a .221 on-base percentage and a .322 slugging percentage. Sucre has just one hit, a single, in 15 at-bats in his six games.
Zduriencik characterized Castillo as a player who has power and “some hittability,” while emphasizing the need for a veteran backup.
“It’s such a demanding position,” Zduriencik said, “that when you get a chance to add a veteran guy. … Our scouts liked him, our analytical people liked him, we thought it was a good fit.”
Medina served last season as the Mariners’ primary set-up reliever in going 5-3 with a 2.68 ERA in 66 games. That followed a rookie season in which he was 4-6 with a 2.91 ERA in 63 games.
But he often battled command issues and, after issuing seven walks this season in 12 innings over 12 games, Medina was optioned to Tacoma despite a 3.00 ERA.
Medina made four appearances for the Rainiers, allowing one run in 52/3 innings while allowing just one hit and one walk.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
