Mariners claim Andreoli from Baltimore, select Curletta to Major League roster

Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels and Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves have been selected as the winners of Baseball Digest's 47th American and National League Rookie-of-the-Year awards.

October 31st, 2018

SEATTLE, Wash. - Seattle Mariners Executive Vice President & General Manager of Baseball Operations Jerry Dipoto announced today the following roster moves:
· John Andreoli, OF, claimed off waivers from the Baltimore Orioles.
· Joey Curletta, INF, selected to Mariners 40-man roster.
· Juan Nicasio, RHP, reinstated from 60-day Disabled List.
· Sam Tuivailala, RHP, reinstated from the 60-day Disabled List.
Seattle's 40-man roster is now at 37 players.
Andreoli, 28, was claimed from Baltimore after being placed on outright waivers by the Orioles on October 29. He appeared in 23 games with the Orioles after being claimed off waivers from Seattle on Aug. 18, batting .232 (13x56) with 4 runs scored, 2 doubles, 4 RBI, 4 walks and 2 stolen bases. Andreoli spent the majority of the season with Triple-A Tacoma and also had 3 stints with the Mariners: May 23-28, July 7-9 and July 20. Overall in 3 games with Seattle in 2018, he went 1-for-5 (.200) with 1 walk. He made his Major League debut with the Mariners on May 23 at Oakland and went 1-for-3 with a walk while also making a sliding catch in right field to rob a base hit in the 8th inning. In 89 games with the Rainiers he hit .287 (94x327) with 54 runs, 18 doubles, 5 triples, 3 home runs, 36 RBI, 55 walks, 19 stolen bases and a .397 on-base percentage. He was on the Rainiers disabled list from April 22 to May 2 with a sprained finger on his right hand.
Andreoli was originally signed by Seattle as a minor league free agent on Dec. 8, 2017 and designated for assignment on August 17, 2018. The Worchester, MA, native was drafted by Chicago-NL in the 17th round of the 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Connecticut. In 8 minor league seasons (2011-current), he's appeared in 773 games, hitting a combined .270 (745x2763) with 127 doubles, 44 triples, 37 home runs and 256 RBI with 247 stolen bases.
Curletta, 24, was named the Ken Griffey Jr. Minor League Hitter of the Year by the Seattle Mariners after batting .282 (131x465) with 70 runs scored, 24 doubles, 23 home runs, 94 RBI, 1 HBP, 81 walks and 1 stolen base in 129 games with Double-A Arkansas in 2018. He was named Texas League Player of the Year while also being named to both the Texas League midseason and postseason All-Star teams. He was the first Traveler to hit 20 or more homers since Randal Grichuk in 2013. Curletta set career highs in nearly every offensive category, while also ranking among the Texas League leaders in RBI (1st, 94), walks (1st, 81), OPS (2nd, .865), on-base percentage (T2nd, .383), home runs (T3rd, 23), slugging percentage (5th, .482), extra-base hits (T6th, 47) and games played (7th, 129). Curletta was one of the most clutch hitters for the Travs this season, homering in the opening inning of the Travs winner-take-all first-half-title-clinching win at NW Arkansas on June 19. Three times this season he belted a pair of homers in a game, including July 17 at Tulsa when his second blast put the Travs on top in the 9th inning of an eventual victory. Curletta also hit a tying three-run shot in the 9th inning of a comeback win at home over Corpus Christi on April 10 and a go-ahead grand slam on August 11 in the 7th inning of a victory over Midland. From May 25-Aug. 7, Curletta reached base safely in 51 of 63 games, batting .338 (78x231) with 37 runs scored, 13 doubles, 15 home runs, 61 RBI and 38 walks. During this stretch he led all Texas League players in RBI (61), OPS (1.011) and walks (38), while also ranking T1st in home runs (15), 2nd in average (.338), on-base percentage (.422) and slugging percentage (.589), 3rd in extra-base hits (28) and 5th in hits (78).
Curletta was acquired by Seattle from Philadelphia in exchange for SHP Pat Venditte on March 12, 2017. He was originally selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 6th round of the 2012 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of Mountain Pointe High School in Phoenix, AZ. He was traded by Los Angeles (NL) to Philadelphia on Sept. 15, 2016 as a PTBNL in a deal that sent Carlos Ruiz to the Dodgers. In parts of 7 minor league seasons, he is batting .264 (665x2520) with 342 runs scored, 160 doubles, 8 triples, 78 home runs, 402 RBI, 20 HBP, 294 walks and 32 stolen bases in 698 career games.
Nicasio, 32, was originally placed on the 10-day disabled list with right knee inflammation on Aug. 3 and transferred to the 60-day disabled list on Sept. 1 for the remainder of the season. He appeared in 46 games with the Mariners in 2018, posting a record of 1-6 with 19 holds, 1 save and a 6.00 ERA (28 ER, 42.0 IP) with 53 strikeouts and 5 walks. He allowed half (14) of his earned runs in just 4 appearances this season (1.1 IP); in his other 42 games he posted a 3.10 ERA (14 ER, 40.2 IP). Nicasio was also on the 10-day disabled list June 7-18 with right knee effusion.
In 2017, Nicasio was tied for the NL lead with a career-high 76 appearances and was T9th in NL in holds (21), 12th among relievers in WHIP (1.08) and 14th in ERA (2.61). He has appeared in parts of 8 Major League seasons with Colorado (2011-14), Los Angeles-NL (2015), Pittsburgh (2016-17), Philadelphia (2017), St. Louis (2017) and Seattle (2018-c) after originally signing with Colorado as a non-drafted free agent on Aug. 21, 2006. He has a career mark of 38-43 with 8 saves and a 4.64 ERA (346 ER, 671.2 IP) with 622 strikeouts and 237 walks in 315 career games (82 starts).
Tuivailala, 26, was originally placed on the 10-day disabled list with a strained right Achilles on Aug. 9 and transferred to the 60-day disabled list on Aug.14. He went 1-0, 1.69 (1 ER, 5.1 IP) in 5 appearances with Seattle in 2018. Tuivailala was acquired by Seattle from St. Louis in exchange for minor league right-handed pitcher Seth Elledge on July 27. Prior to joining the Mariners he went 3-3 with 4 holds and a 3.69 ERA (13 ER, 31.2 IP) in 31 games with the Cardinals. He had 21 scoreless outings in his 31 appearances, and allowed 1 run or fewer in 29 of his 31 games, limiting right-handed hitters to a .230 (17x74) average with just 2 extra-base hits (2B, HR).
Tuivailala was the Cardinals 3rd round selection in the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft. He was converted from shortstop to pitcher in 2012 and made the jump from rookie ball to the Majors in just 87 appearances, debuting vs. the Reds on Sept. 9, 2014.