Mariners DFA Leonys Martin, Call Up Daniel Vogelbach and Chris Heston

In a shocking early season move, the Seattle Mariners DFA Leonys Martin. The team has called up Daniel Vogelbach from Triple-A Tacoma to replace Martin on the roster.

The news came as a surprise as Martin was widely considered to be a favorite among both the players and coaching staffs. Despite his early struggles, he was widely considered in the Mariners organization as one of the premier defensive centerfielders in all of baseball.

Martin had recently lost playing time against left-handed pitching to Guillermo Heredia, and sat against a right-handed pitcher for the first time yesterday. His .111/.172/.130 line did not help his cause, though there is some speculation that Martin may not have been himself in the clubhouse.

Former Mariner and current post-game analyst at 710 ESPN Seattle, Ryan Roland-Smith, had mentioned that Martin was ” not acting normally” and described his demeanor as “mopey.”

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The team now has ten days to trade Martin. If they are unable to find a trade partner, he can be claimed on waivers by any team. If Martin does clear waivers, GM Jerry Dipoto has said the team would “love to keep him in the organization.”

The move is puzzling, to say the least. The team now have just 3 “true outfielders” on their roster.

They likely believe that Nelson Cruz, Danny Valencia, and Taylor Motter can play the outfield if necessary.

The team could have ended their experiment with an eight-man bullpen, and kept Martin as a 4th outfielder. The team instead decided to release Martin, without any guarantee that they can get him back.

Also, Seattle recalled first baseman Daniel Vogelbach to take Martin’s spot on the roster. Vogelbach is set to take over the first base duties, at least against right-handed pitching. The team also sent down Chase De Jong and recalled Chris Heston.

Whether or not a clubhouse incident forced the team to make the move remains to be seen. Perhaps this is simply an elbow being thrown by management to an underachieving team.

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Perhaps it’s a message that nobody is a sacred cow. Either you produce, or we will move on, no matter how beloved you are. Only time will tell if it will work for the 2017 Seattle Mariners.