Mariners Claim Drew Ellis, Transfer Mitch Haniger to 60-Day IL

The Mariners have added some infield depth to their 40-man roster, claiming Drew Ellis from the Diamondbacks.

Inside the Mariners | Jun 16, 2022

Mariners Claim Drew Ellis, Transfer Mitch Haniger to 60-Day IL /

In this story:

SEATTLE — The Mariners have claimed 26-year old infielder Drew Ellis, who was designated for assignment by the Diamondbacks on June 12.

Ellis has primarily played third base in his professional career, but he's moved around the diamond to second and first as well. His major league career has gotten off to a rough start, resulting in a .134/.268/.207 slash line with one home run, six RBI, a 34 percent strikeout rate, 11.3 percent walk rate and a wRC+ of 37 in 97 plate appearances.

However, in his first season at the Triple-A level last year, Ellis dominated to the tune of a .294/.399/.615 slash line over the course of 81 games. He cranked a career-high 20 home runs and drove in 73 runs while striking out 24.3 percent of the time and running a 12.8 percent walk rate.

To make room for Ellis on the 40-man roster, Seattle moved outfielder Mitch Haniger (ankle) to the 60-day injured list. The move is retroactive to the start of Haniger's IL stint on April 30 and is not an indication of a setback for the veteran, who's not expected to return until mid July at the earliest.