Seattle Mariners Designate Interesting Utility Player For Assignment After Trade
The Seattle Mariners acquired catcher Blake Hunt on Wednesday in a deal with the Baltimore Orioles. Hunt is an interesting player, who will likely serve as catching depth at Triple-A Tacoma. He was actually with the M’s system once before, and they traded him to Baltimore in May of 2024.
However, there’s two sides to the coin. With Hunt’s acquisition comes the designating for assignment of utility player Samad Taylor.
A 26-year-old speedster, Taylor broke in to the big leagues in 2023 with the Kansas City Royals. He played 31 games for Kansas City that year, stealing eight bases and registering a .200 batting average. The Mariners brought him in for the 2024 season, and he played in just three games, going 2-for-5 at the plate. He can play in the infield and the outfield.
After being designated, the M’s will have seven days to trade him, release him, or send him to the minors. If he clears waivers, the M’s can keep him in the minor leagues, and they may be inclined to do so because of his speed and versatility.
Taylor was drafted in the 10th round of the 2016 draft by the Cleveland Guardians. He’s a lifetime .263 hitter in the minor leagues in more than 2,500 at-bats. In 136 games at Triple-A Tacoma last year, he hit .262 with 11 homers and 75 RBI. He also stole 50 bases against just 15 caught stealings.
The Mariners report to spring training in less than one month. Opening Day is March 27.
