SEATTLE, Wash. - Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto announced today that the club has agreed to terms on 2019 contracts with two arbitration eligible players on the club's Major League, 40-man roster: left-handed pitcher Roenis Elías and outfielder Domingo Santana. Per club policy, the terms of the contracts were not disclosed.
By agreeing to terms with the two players, the Mariners have no remaining arbitration eligible players.
Elías, 30, went 3-1 with a 2.65 ERA (15 ER, 51.0 IP) with 34 strikeouts and 16 walks in 23 appearances (4 starts) with the Mariners last season. From Aug. 22 through the end of the regular season, he went 1-0 with a 0.78 ERA (2 ER, 23.0 IP) with 14 strikeouts and 6 walks in 9 games (2 starts). The 5-foot-11, 205-pound left-hander was on the 10-day disabled list with a left triceps strain from July 31 (retroactive to July 29)-Aug. 19, including 3 rehab appearances (1 start) with Triple-A Tacoma. He was acquired by the Mariners from the Red Sox for a player to be named later or cash considerations on April 23; Seattle sent cash considerations on June 15. He made 7 appearances (6 starts) with Triple-A Tacoma prior to being recalled by the Mariners on June 1. He began the season with Triple-A Pawtucket, where he appeared in 4 games.
The lefty was originally signed by Seattle as a minor league free agent on May 3, 2011 and made his Major League debut with the Mariners on April 3, 2014 at Oakland. Elías was acquired by the Red Sox from the Mariners on Dec. 7, 2015 along with RHP Carson Smith in exchange for LHP Wade Miley and RHP Jonathan Aro. In parts of 5 Major League seasons with the Mariners (2014-15, 2018-c) and Red Sox (2016-17), he is 18-22 with a 3.97 ERA (149 ER, 338.0 IP) with 278 strikeouts and 130 walks in 78 career games (54 starts).
Santana, 26, was acquired by the Mariners from the Brewers in exchange for outfielder Ben Gamel and minor league right-handed pitcher Noah Zavolas on Dec. 21, 2018. He hit .265 (56x211) with 21 runs, 14 doubles, 5 home runs and 20 RBI in 85 games with Milwaukee in 2018. He also appeared in 55 games with AAA Colorado Springs last season, hitting .283 (53x187) with 10 doubles, 2 triples, 8 home runs, 35 RBI, a .401 on-base percentage and a .487 slugging mark (.888 OPS).
In 2017, Santana appeared in 151 games with the Brewers and hit .278 with a .371 on-base percentage and a .505 slugging percentage (.875 OPS) to go along with 29 doubles, 30 home runs and 85 RBI. He was one of the most productive right fielders in the National League, ranking among the NL right fielder leaders in steals (15 / T1st), HR (T2nd), walks (73 / T2nd), on-base percentage (2nd), extra-base hits (57 / T2nd), RBI (3rd), hits (3rd), runs (3rd), batting average (3rd), and OPS (.873 / 3rd).
Santana was originally signed by Philadelphia as an international free agent in 2009 out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He was traded to Houston in 2011 and made his MLB debut with the Astros in 2014, prior to being traded to Milwaukee in 2015. In parts of five big league campaigns (2014-2018), he is a career .261 (303x1159) hitter with 64 doubles, 1 triple, 54 home runs and 163 RBI in a combined 371 games. Santana has a career on-base mark of .349 and a career slugging percentage of .458 (807 OPS). The 6-foot-5, right-handed hitter has appeared at all three outfield positions in his Major League career.