Seattle Mariners acquire David Phelps from Miami Marlins
By Tim Haberin
The Seattle Mariners will add David Phelps to their bullpen after sending four prospects to the Miami Marlins.
The Seattle Mariners made a move to help their bullpen on Thursday, acquiring right-hander David Phelps from the Miami Marlins in exchange for four prospects. News of the agreement was first reported by Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports.
Yahoo Sports’ Jeff Passan and the New York Post’s Joel Sherman added that the prospects going to Miami in the deal are outfielder Brayan Hernandez and right-handed pitchers Brandon Miller, Pablo Lopez and Lukas Schiraldi. Hernandez was the Mariners’ #6 prospect, per MLB Pipeline.
Phelps has done a solid job this year out of the Marlins bullpen as one of the team’s primary setup options. The 30-year-old owns a 3.45 ERA, 1.34 WHIP and 2.43 K/BB ratio in 47 innings of work. After a frustrating June in which he posted a 5.40 ERA, Phelps seems to have put himself back on track this month, managing a 1.13 ERA across eight July appearances.
The Mariners bullpen has been in the middle of the pack this season, with an overall ERA of 4.05 that ranks 13th in Major League Baseball. Seattle hopes Phelps will bolster its relief corps as it eyes a playoff berth. He’ll join a group that has featured some standout performers this year.
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Closer Edwin Diaz appears to have evened out after a rough start. He’s 11-for-12 in save opportunities with a 1.78 ERA since May 19. The club has also received quality innings from Nick Vincent and Tony Zych, as well as lefties James Pazos and Marc Rzepczynski. All sport ERAs under 3.50.
Phelps bounced between a starting and relief role during his first four campaigns as a major leaguer. He never really flourished in either, generating a mediocre 4.29 ERA over that span. However, he began to thrive as a nearly full-time reliever last season, putting up a 2.28 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 3.00 K/BB over 86.2 frames. Under team control through 2018, the M’s will hope to see more of that. Phelps will likely get a chance to face one of his former teams this weekend as the Mariners take on the Yankees at Safeco Field.
Seattle likely isn’t done here either. The club has apparently decided to buy before the trade deadline, and it’s not hard to see why. While the division is all but out of reach thanks to the Astros, the Mariners have pulled to within a game and a half of a Wild Card spot after winning seven of their last 10 contests. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see them angle for some rotation help by July 31.
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Meanwhile, Miami will presumably continue to sell off pieces in the coming days. Rumors have swirled around a variety of players, and it remains to be seen just how far they’re willing to go. However, MLB.com’s Joe Frisaro says the Marlins are already discussing another of their relievers with interested clubs, closer AJ Ramos.