Mark Trumbo Is Not The Answer To The Seattle Mariners Woes

Within an hour of being swept by the New York Yankees on Wednesday, the Seattle Mariners announced a trade which brings Arizona Diamondbacks OF Mark Trumbo and left handed pitcher Vidal Nuno to Seattle in exchange for catcher Wellington Castillo, right-hander Dominic Leone, and prospects Gabby Guerrero and Jack Reinheimer. The centerpiece of the deal is Trumbo, who will presumably slot into a corner outfield position and bat somewhere in the middle of the lineup as a righty power bat.

While Trumbo certainly has power, having hit 29, 32, and 34 HR in his last three full seasons with the Los Angeles Angels, he brings little else to either the plate or the field. His lifetime OBP sits at .298 with a 6.4% walk rate and a 24.7% strike out rate.

For a Mariners team that ranks dead last in the AL and 28^th out of 30 teams in all of MLB in OBP at .297, Trumbo adds very little to the run scoring equation – getting men on base. In fact, the Mariners ranking in runs scored correlates directly to their OBP. They are next to last in the AL and 28^th in the MLB in runs scored. Getting on base is the key to scoring runs and Trumbo doesn’t do that any better than the rest of the roster.

In the OF, Trumbo is a below average fielder. In LF with 916.1 innings, Trumbo has a DRS (Total Defensive Runs Saved) of -1, while in RF with 779.1 innings that number is -7. Couple that with fellow below average OF Nelson Cruz and Seth Smith, Austin Jackson (who has declined significantly defensively himself) will have an expanse of outfield to cover.

An outfield of Trumbo, Cruz, and Jackson might be one of the worst defensively in all of the big leagues. And, ironically, Dustin Ackley, who can’t seem to even hit his weight, is the only really plus defender the Mariners have on a roster seemingly populated only by outfielders.

Considering the total package of hitting and fielding, Trumbo projects out going forward as less than a 1 WAR by both Zips and Steamer. In other words, the Mariners just acquired a player of below replacement level skills.

Of course, if the Mariners break out and start winning, the Trumbo trade will be hailed as the turning point, but realistically this move is not the solution to what has been, so far, a disappointing Mariners season.