Mariners Acquire 1B/DH Kendrys Morales from Minnesota for RHP Stephen Pryor
Mariners acquire switch-hitter Kendrys Morales from Twins in exchange for RHP Stephen Pryor.
SEATTLE, Wash. - Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik announced today the club has acquired first baseman/designated hitter Kendrys Morales from the Minnesota Twins in exchange for right-handed relief pitcher Stephen Pryor.
Morales, 31, is scheduled to report to the Mariners tomorrow at which time a 25-man roster move will be made. A jersey number will be assigned to him tomorrow.
Morales returns to the Mariners after a brief stint with the Twins. After signing as a free agent with Minnesota on June 8, Morales has appeared in 39 games (28 starts: DH - 26, 1B - 12) and is batting .234 (36x154) with 11 doubles, 1 home run and 18 RBI. He had a 12-game hitting streak (.292/14x48) snapped yesterday going 0-for-4 in the Twins 3-1 win over the Indians.
In 156 games with the Mariners last season Morales led the team in batting average (.277), hits (167), doubles (34), RBI (80), multi-hit games (46) and extra-base hits (57). The 23 home runs established a club record for a switch hitter. In 79 games at Safeco Field he hit .282 (85x301) with 21 doubles, 12 home runs and 41 RBI.
The Cuban native is a career .277 hitter (658x2376) with 141 doubles, 103 home runs and 363 RBI in 659 games with the Angels (2006-2012), Mariners (2013) and Twins (2014).
Pryor, 25, made one appearance for the Mariners this season after opening the season on the disabled list (surgery to repair right latissimus dorsi muscle). He appeared in 34 games with the Mariners from 2012-2014, recording a 2.81 ERA (10 ER, 32.0 IP) with 35 strikeouts (9.8 K/9.0 IP). He was originally selected by the Mariners in the 5th round of the 2010 June Draft out of Tennessee Tech University.
The Mariners 40-man roster is currently at 38 with two players on the 60-day disabled list.