Baltimore Orioles Roster News 2015: Mark Trumbo Obtained in Trade with Mariners
The Baltimore Orioles released catcher Steve Clevenger on Wednesday in exchange for Mark Trumbo and C.J. Riefenhauser from the Seattle Mariners. The trade is seen as a move by the Orioles to prepare for the looming departure of first baseman Chris Davis.
Baltimore also followed the trade up by designating right hander Steve Johnson for assignment. Clevenger is a hometown player who was signed by the Orioles in 2013 after a trade with the Chicago Cubs, though he did not enjoy the kind of playing time he would have wanted in Baltimore after being designated as a backup. As a matter of fact, he only played less than 40 games in each of the two seasons he was with the Orioles.
Trumbo's acquisition is more like a move to minimize the effect of a would-be loss of Chris Davis, who by the way played great baseball last season, producing 47 homeruns. Many baseball observers consider him as a big fish in the free agent market this offseason.
Trumbo, though, is no pushover, showing he also can be a big time hitter. His average currently stands at 31 HRs and 96 RBIs in 162 games. So in essence, this trade does actually make a lot of sense for the Orioles, although they had to give up a local talent in Clevenger.
Seattle for its part wanted to get rid of Trumbo's fat contract and it certainly looked like they were more than committed to dumping him. It just so happens that they'll also be getting a good backup catcher in Clevenger, while at the same time being able to finally rid the team of the lucrative payday Trumbo's been asking.
It may be true that Davis is on his way out of Baltimore, but it actually is a very intriguing prospect if the Orioles can actually retain Davis' services. It sure would be a powerful lineup for the team next season.
