Mariners pick up Rays slugger Arozarena to help AL West title pursuit

The Seattle Mariners acquired outfielder Randy Arozarena from the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday night in the hope of boosting their slumping offence.

The Mariners, who moved pitcher Brady Hopkins, outfielder Aidan Smith and a player to be named later in the deal, are in the midst of a major slide over the past month that has seen them lose a 10-game lead in the American League West largely due to a struggling offence. Seattle is 9-20 since June 19 and now trails Houston in the division standings.

The MLB trade deadline is July 30 at 6 p.m. ET.

Seattle is also dealing with injuries that have star centre-fielder Julio Rodriguez out until sometime August due to a high-ankle sprain and shortstop J.P. Crawford out for four to six weeks due to a broken pinky finger.

"Randy is a dynamic, high-energy all-around player who has excelled in the biggest moments on the biggest stages," Seattle general manager Justin Hollander said in a statement. "He's going to be a great addition to our clubhouse and lineup."

Arozarena has the chance to help Seattle at the plate, although the outfielder is hitting a career-low .211 in 100 games with 15 homers and 36 runs batted in. Despite the low average, Arozarena still has a .712 on-base-plus slugging percentage this season, which is higher than all but one player in Seattle's everyday lineup.

And he's been on the upswing at the plate for nearly two months. Since June 1, Arozarena is hitting .284 with a .397 on-base percentage and .904 OPS. He's hit seven homers and walked 20 times during that 43-game span.

Last season, Arozarena hit a career-high 23 homers and was the all-star game starter in left field when the game was played at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, a place where he's hit .289 in his career. Arozarena is on pace for a fourth straight season with at least 20 long balls.

The deal comes with the Rays (52-51) sitting 9 1/2 games back in the AL East race but only four games out in the wild-card standings. The Mariners sent a pair of minor league prospects, right-handed pitcher Brody Hopkins and outfielder Aidan Smith, to the Rays along with a player to be named later.

The Mariners were in desperate need of a jolt after being swept at home by the Los Angeles Angels and beginning the post-all-star break portion of the schedule by losing five of six. Going back to before the break, the Mariners have dropped eight of nine and have scored two runs or fewer in seven of those games.

All that despite a pitching staff that leads baseball with a 3.41 ERA and is allowing just 3.66 runs per game on average.

Arozarena also comes with future control. He's eligible for arbitration for the next two seasons and won't hit free agency until 2027.

D-backs move minor leaguers for Puk

The Arizona Diamondbacks added left-handed pitcher A.J. Puk in a trade with the Miami Marlins on Thursday, signalling that the D-backs will be a buyer at the rapidly approaching deadline.

The 29-year-old Puk should be useful in the back end of the D-backs' bullpen. He's been a solid reliever the past three seasons and has a 4-8 record with a 4.30 ERA in 32 appearances this season.

The D-back, defending National League champions, have improved this season after a slow start and own a 53-50 record.

The Marlins received minor league third baseman Deyvison De Los Santos and outfielder Andrew Pintar. The 21-year-old De Los Santos is hitting .325 with 28 homers and 84 RBI while playing in double-A and triple-A this season.

Puk is still under team control through the 2026 season, which explains why the D-backs were willing to part with De Los Santos, who has been a great hitter at every stop in his minor-league career.