Seattle Mariners: Jake Bauers great fit for what team is trying to do
After the Jarred Kelenic initial audition failed, the Seattle Mariners were left with a void on their Major League roster. The Mariners find themselves in a bit of a quandary. Through 64 games they are hanging around the American League West Division, playing close to .500 baseball. Too early to throw the towel in on the season and not a good time to be giving at-bats to a youngster hitting .096.
Cleveland felt the same way about Jake Bauers. The Indians find themselves five games above .500, a handful of games out of first place in the American League Central Division. They no longer had room on their team for a career .211 hitter. They cut ties with Bauers, then sent him to Seattle.
Jake Bauers will find new life with the Mariners
Why is the situation different in Seattle than in Cleveland? The Indians, with Jose Ramirez on the roster, are in a win-now mode. The Mariners are still in a rebuild mode and as the dog days of summer move along, will most likely fade, falling to the depths of the division.
With the news of outfielder Kyle Lewis being on the shelf indefinitely, the Mariners were in the market for some cheap production. Produce is one thing Bauers has not done at the big league level. In just over 250 games, his slash-line is nothing to write home about.
He was a well thought of prospect at one time. This is the third time he has been traded for in his career (his value has fallen as shown by this trade where he was acquired for cash or a player to be named later), and he has been swapped in deals involving Carlos Santana, Edwin Encarnacion, and Trea Turner.
Next. Kelenic demotion a catch 22. dark
For Bauers, the OPS has never been good, though the potential for power is there. As far as the Mariners are concerned, if he can play both the infield and outfield as well as get on base at a decent clip, he’ll do just fine. This is a low risk-medium reward move which most likely benefits both parties involved.