The Seattle Mariners have made their second trade ahead of the trade deadline on Thursday. Many reports had stated that the Mariners were in the market for bullpen arms. They are still heavily involved in some discussions, but on Wednesday afternoon the Mariners acquired Caleb Ferguson from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates are receiving Jeter Martinez in return.
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Caleb Ferguson
The 29-year-old left-handed reliever is in the midst of a strong season with Pittsburgh. He has logged 43 1/3 innings and a 3.74 ERA with a 19.3% strikeout rate. He has only given up one home run all season and walks very few batters. Ferguson may not be a flamethrower like Matt Brash or Andres Munoz, but his fastball does top out at mid-90s and he has a four-pitch arsenal. Ferguson has spent seven total seasons in the MLB, with most of those years coming for the Yankees. He signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Pirates this offseason.
The Mariners have struggled to find a second quality southpaw in house, so acquiring Caleb Ferguson will give Dan Wilson options. Seattle is still looking for a high-leverage arm, as that’s not really a role that Ferguson will fill.
Jeter Martinez
The Pirates will receive the 19-year-old in return. Martinez, a 6-4 right-hander, signed with the Mariners out of Mexico during the 2022-23 signing period. According to MLB Pipeline, he was ranked No. 13 in the Mariners system. He has struggled with the Mariners’ Low-A Modesto Nuts this season, starting 16 games and pitching to a 6.18 ERA. There’s a chance that Martinez could move to the bullpen at some point, but that will now be on the Pirates’ development department to decide. He has great stuff, but struggles with command. Though there are still two years until he needs to be protected by the Rule 5 Draft.
