Mariners acquire outfielder Chris Denorfia
Send OF Abraham Almonte & RHP Stephen Kohlscheen to San Diego
CLEVELAND, Ohio - Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jack Zduriencik announced that the Mariners have acquired outfielder Chris Denorfia from the San Diego Padres in exchange for outfielder Abraham Almonte and right-handed pitcher Stephen Kohlscheen.
Denorfia, 34, was hitting .242 (60x248) with 25 runs, 10 doubles, 3 triples, 1 home run and 16 RBI in 89 games with San Diego. In his career against left-handed pitchers, he is hitting .301 (231x768) with 45 doubles, 5 triples, 18 home runs, 83 RBI and an .809 OPS. He has appeared in all three outfield positions this season (RF-55, LF-26, CF-14) and in his career he has appeared in over 150 games at each position (RF-331, LF-241, CF-164).
Originally signed by the Cincinnati Reds as a 19th-round selection in the 2002 First-Year Player Draft, he was signed by the Padres as a minor league free agent in December 2009. Over parts of nine Major League seasons with the Reds (2005-06), Athletics (2008-09) and Padres (2010-14), he has hit .275 (514-for-1868) with 90 doubles, 15 triples, 36 home runs, 173 RBI and 260 runs scored in 673 games played.
Almonte, 25, began the season as Seattle's starting center fielder after making the big league club out of spring training. In 27 games with Seattle, he hit .198 (21-for-106) with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run and 8 RBI. Since being optioned to AAA Tacoma, he is hitting .267 (74-for-277) with 10 doubles, 3 triples, 6 home runs and 31 RBI in 72 games. He's stolen 7 bases in 11 attempts, and has a .333 on-base percentage and is slugging .390. Almonte was acquired by Seattle from New York (AL) in exchange for Shawn Kelley on Feb. 13, 2013.
Kohlscheen, 25, split time this season between AA Jackson and AAA Tacoma. In 23 games, all in relief, with Jackson he was 1-1 with 6 saves and a 2.25 earned run average. He appeared in 15 games after being promoted to Tacoma and was 2-0, 3.28 in 15 relief appearances. Kohlscheen was the Mariners 45th round selection in the 2010 June draft out of Auburn University.