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Seattle will also send player Guillermo Heredia to Tampa in exchange for player Mallex Smith, who hit .296 with the Rays last season.
Mike Zunino may not have to leave his home in Gainesville, Florida early in the 2019 season.
Several Major League Baseball sources said the Mariners were finalizing an agreement with their favorite trading partner, the Tampa Bay Rays. Seattle would send Zunino and fieldman Guillermo Heredia to Tampa in exchange for field player Mallex Smith.
Both teams have been engaged in trade negotiations since last week. And as in all trades, as long as medical reports and details are not deleted, the transaction will not be finalized. But the basic framework of the agreement is in place.
This is the 10th exchange between Mariners and Rays since chief executive Jerry Dipoto began his tenure in Seattle.
Zunino, who won the Wilson Defensive Player of the Year award for catchers on Wednesday afternoon, was an excellent catcher for the Mariners at league level for five and a half seasons, playing 575 games and recording plus 4829 sleeves behind the plate. His bat, however, did not display this kind of consistency. He had difficulty with jumps and misses, scoring in 34% of his 2,087 appearances on the plate. But there have been periods, especially the 2017 season where he beat .250 with 25 doubles, 25 homers and 64 RBIs in 124 matches, which gave the Mariners the hope that he could to be an All-Star level receiver and a fundamental part of the organization.
Taken along with the third overall pick of the 2012 Florida University draw, Zunino was rushed into the major leagues to his own detriment by the old management regime. . As expected, he struggled to adapt to the advanced throws of the big leagues.
Heredia has served as the fourth end for the Mariners over the past three seasons, gaining daily portions due to injuries. He struggled to increase playing time by scoring a .236 / .318 / .342 slash line with 14 doubles, a triple, five homers and 19 RBIs in 125 games. But he is an exceptional defensive player who will need the Rays' lineup.
Smith was in fact a sailor for a total of 77 minutes in January 2017. Seattle acquired it, along with his reliever, Shae Simmons, Braves for pitchers Luiz Gohara and Thomas Burrows. A little over an hour later, Dipoto sent him and two minor leagues to the Rays in exchange for Drew Smyly.
Smith had an outstanding season for the Rays, posting a .296 / .367 / .406 slash line with 27 doubles, 10 triples, two homers, 40 RBIs and 40 steals in 141 games with the Rays. He can play the three field positions. And if the Mariners decided to move Dee Gordon to the infield, Smith would be their everyday player. Smith will make the minimum league in 2019 and will then be eligible for arbitration for three years.
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