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Mariners Trade Alex Colome to White Sox for Omar Narvaez
November 30, 2018
The Seattle Mariners reached an agreement Friday to trade relief pitcher Alex Colome to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for catcher Omar Narvaez.
Seattle general manager Jerry Dipoto announced the deal and made a statement about the M's addition.
"Omar has quietly developed into one of the tougher outs among catchers in MLB, his contact and on-base skills are welcome additions to our lineup," Dipoto said. "The fact that he is also under club control through 2022 made him a great fit for our club."
The Mariners acquired Colome, 29, in a May trade with the Tampa Bay Rays. He was tremendous for Seattle, posting a 2.53 ERA and 1.04 WHIP with 49 strikeouts in 46.1 innings across 47 appearances. The flamethrowing right-hander also tallied a 5-0 record and 30 holds.
White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said in a statement that Colome, who racked up 95 saves across the previous two-plus seasons in Tampa Bay, will give manager Rick Renteria a versatile weapon for the bullpen.
"We view Alex as a terrific addition to our bullpen given his experience in a number of relief roles, including closing very successfully for Tampa Bay in 2016-18 before moving into a setup role with the Mariners," he said. "Alex is going to be a very important bullpen piece for Ricky and our team over the next couple of years."
Colome has two years left of arbitration before potentially becoming a free agent in 2021, per Spotrac.
Meanwhile, Narvaez compiled a .275/.366/.429 triple-slash line with nine home runs in 98 games for the White Sox during the 2018 season. His WAR (2.1) ranked eighth among catches with at least 100 plate appearances, according to FanGraphs.
The 26-year-old Venezuela native should immediately step into a full-time starting role for Seattle, which ranked 29th in on-base percentage from its catchers last season.
All told, it looks like a win-win trade on the surface with both sides dealing from a position of strength to address an area of need heading toward the 2019 campaign.