LAS VEGAS -- Looking for every opportunity to add young talent for their rebuilding efforts, the Mariners selected right-handed reliever Brandon Brennan from the Rockies in the Major League portion of the Rule 5 Draft on Thursday.
Brennan, 27, split last year between Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte in the White Sox organization and was recently signed by the Rockies to a Minor League contract. He was 4-3 with a 3.10 ERA in 40 outings (one start) with Birmingham and 1-1 with a 5.40 ERA in four relief appearances for Charlotte.
"He's a guy we went after as a six-year free agent," said Mariners vice president of scouting Tom Allison. "We lost out to the Rockies, but he's somebody we kept tabs on. Opportunity is probably what he needs the most, and we have that to give him."
Allison said Brennan has a fastball in the 89-92 mph range and a quality changeup they feel can be a difference maker.
"This was a really good collaboration with our scouting and analytics people," Allison said. "Brian DeLunas, our pitching director, feels we can make some tweaks with this guy. He has a really good offspeed pitch in the changeup and slider, and [we can] turn him into a valuable piece for us at the big league level in the bullpen."
The 6-foot-4, 220-pounder was a fourth-round Draft pick by the White Sox in 2012 out of Orange Coast Community College in California.
The Mariners must now pay the Rockies $100,000 for the rights to Brennan, and he'll need to spend all of 2019 on Seattle's 25-man Major League roster or be offered back to the Rockies for $50,000. Players are only eligible for the Rule 5 Draft if they are not on a 40-man roster and have spent four seasons in pro ball if they initially signed when they were 19 or older, or five seasons if they were signed at 18 or younger.
Having traded away or lost a number of their relievers to free agency, the Mariners definitely have an opportunity for Brennan to land a roster spot next spring. Seattle has only made one Rule 5 Draft pick in general manager Jerry Dipoto's previous three seasons with the Mariners, selecting Yankees first baseman Mike Ford last year. But Ford didn't make the club in Spring Training and was sent back to the Yankees.
With Brennan's addition, Seattle's 40-man roster is now at 37 players.