SI:AM | Mariners Pull Off First Big Trade of Deadline Season

Adding Randy Arozarena is just what Seattle’s putrid offense needs.

Arozarena has 15 home runs and 16 stolen bases this season. / Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. There’s still plenty of time to listen to the preview of all 39 Olympic sports that I did with Mitch Goldich before the opening ceremony on Friday afternoon.

In today’s SI:AM:

🚫 A no-hitter!
🇺🇸 USWNT cruises past Zambia
🇨🇦 Canada’s soccer scandal

They need the help

With the MLB trade deadline looming, there hasn’t been a whole lot of action yet, but the Seattle Mariners made a splash overnight Thursday by acquiring slugger Randy Arozarena from the Tampa Bay Rays in the biggest move we’ve seen ahead of Tuesday’s 6 p.m. ET deadline.

The Rays will receive two prospects in return: pitcher Brody Hopkins and outfielder Aidan Smith. Hopkins was ranked as the No. 7 prospect in Seattle’s system by Fangraphs and No. 22 by MLB.com, while Smith was No. 21 on the Fangraphs list and No. 12 on MLB.com’s. Tampa Bay will also receive a player to be named later.

The Mariners were a perfect candidate to take a big swing at the deadline. Their record currently stands at 53–51, one game behind the Houston Astros in the AL West race. Seattle’s lead in the division had grown as large as 10 games back on June 18, but the team is 9–20 since then and has seen that lead evaporate entirely.

The Mariners are also in serious need of help on offense, particularly in the outfield. They’re averaging just 3.75 runs per game, third-worst in the majors, ahead of only the two worst teams in baseball: the Miami Marlins and Chicago White Sox. They’ve had the best pitching staff in the majors, allowing just 3.66 runs per game, but their languid offense has repeatedly cost them games. They were swept earlier this week by the Los Angeles Angels, scoring just one run in each of the three games.

The offense took another hit when center fielder Julio Rodríguez was injured after colliding with the outfield wall. He was subsequently placed on the 10-day injured list with a high ankle sprain. Rodríguez, the 2022 AL Rookie of the Year, was an MVP candidate last season but has struggled at the plate this year. He’s barely been above league-average as a hitter this season, posting a 102 OPS+, but Seattle’s offense has been so terrible that he’s still one of the team’s best hitters. Of the 10 Mariners players with at least 250 plate appearances this year, only four have an OPS+ over 100 (the MLB average) and the highest is Cal Raleigh at 107.

Arozarena has also been having a down season, posting career lows in several key offensive categories. His OPS+ is 105, which would be tied for second best among Mariners regulars but is still a significant drop-off from the 124 he averaged over the past three seasons. This isn’t just a rental for the Mariners, though. Arozarena will not become a free agent until after the 2026 season, so they’ll be counting on him and Rodríguez to bounce back and form a fearsome power hitting outfield duo for the foreseeable future.

The Mariners’ fatal flaw is obvious. If they can just find a way to get more runs across the plate, they should have no trouble overtaking the Astros and punching their ticket to the postseason. Adding Arozarena is an important first step toward an improved offense, but it would be surprising if this is the only move Seattle makes to improve its offense. It could still benefit from an upgrade at second base (Jorge Polanco) or third base (Josh Rojas). Otherwise, all that excellent pitching might end up going to waste.

The USWNT easily took care of Zambia 3–0 Thursday. / Erick W. Rasco/Sports Illustrated

The best of Sports Illustrated

• The U.S. women’s soccer team made quick work of Zambia in its Olympic opener. Clare Brennan has more on the team’s tone-setting performance.

• Art Stricklin played in a tournament that should be on every golfer’s bucket list: the Arctic Open.

• Michael Rosenberg weighed in on what’s shaping up to be the biggest scandal of these Olympics: Canada Soccer’s use of drones to spy on opponents.

• In other MLB trade deadline news, the Diamondbacks acquired reliever A.J. Puk from the Marlins.

• A’s star reliever Mason Miller is the latest pitcher to land on the injured list after letting his emotions get the best of him.

• This shouldn’t be a surprise, but 42-year-old Diana Taurasi confirmed that this will be her last Olympics.

• In other news out of France, six-time champion soccer club Bordeaux announced that it will relinquish its professional status.

The top five…

… things I saw yesterday:

5. SNY’s clever camera work on Francisco Lindor’s home run. (Did you spot the “OMG” at the end?)
4. The view inside the Mets broadcast booth during their walk-off win.
3. Mallory Swanson’s two goals in one minute.
2. The Padres’ juggling catch in the fifth inning of Dylan Cease’s no-hitter.
1. Aoba Fujino’s spectacular free-kick goal for Japan.