Seattle Mariners acquired infielder Ryon Healy for relief pitcher Emilio Pagan and incrementally improve at first base.
It should be no surprise that Seattle Mariners GM Jerry Dipoto is already making trades. Dipoto is well known for being willing to make a deal. He’s been very busy reshaping the Mariners roster since he took over in Seattle. In a trade announced Wednesday, the Mariners acquired Oakland A’s infielder Ryon Healy for pitcher Emilio Pagan and minor league infielder Alexander Campos.
Healy hit well in his rookie year in 2016, when he played in 72 games and hit .305/.337/.524, with 13 home runs and 37 RBI. He played a full season this year and hit 25 homers with 78 RBI, but his rate stats were down: .271/.302/.451. By wRC+, he went from 32 percent better than average to right at league average as a hitter. He also hasn’t shown much plate discipline in his major league career, with a walk rate just under four percent.
Defense is not his strong suit. After playing third base exclusively in his rookie season, Healy was in the lineup more often as the DH than in the field this year. He played 34 games at the hot corner and 39 games at first base.
Based on defensive metrics at Fangraphs, in 106 games at third base over the last two years, he’s been one of the worst fielders in baseball at the position. He’s been much better in a small sample size of 39 games at first base.
To acquire Healy, the Seattle Mariners sent relief pitcher Emilio Pagan to the A’s. Pagan pitched 50.3 innings with a 3.22 ERA and 3.28 FIP for the M’s this year. He struck out 56 batters and walked just eight. He’s primarily a fastball-slider pitcher, with a very occasional change-up.