Mariners designate former top outfield prospect for assignment

The Mariners announced Thursday that they’ve designated former top outfield prospect Taylor Trammell for assignment. He was out of minor league options and didn’t make Seattle’s Opening Day roster, necessitating the DFA.

Selected by the Reds with the No. 35 overall draft pick back in 2016, the now 26-year-old Trammell ranked among baseball’s top 100 prospects each year from 2018-21. Trammell has participated in a pair of Futures Games and has twice been traded, most recently going from the Padres to the Mariners alongside Andres Munoz, Ty France, Luis Torrens in the deal sending Austin Nola, Austin Adams, and Dan Altavilla back to San Diego.

At the time of that swap, a then-rebuilding Mariners club hoped to add another long-term building block. Seattle had enviable prospect depth in the outfield, headlined by Trammell, Jarred Kelenic, and the current face of the franchise, Julio Rodriguez. Not all prospects pan out, however, as evidenced by the fact that Trammell and Kelenic are both off the 40-man roster—the latter no longer even in the organization.

Trammell has had multiple auditions with the Mariners, appearing in the 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons. Arguably, he hasn’t been given a true big-league run with consistent playing time and without fear of being sent back down due to a talented and crowded outfield mix, but he’s yet to prove he can handle big-league pitching. In 351 MLB trips to the plate, he’s a .168/.270/.368 hitter with a massive 37% strikeout rate.

That said, Trammell has been vastly better in Triple-A. He’s also spent parts of three seasons there, turning in a stout .274/.381/.506 batting line with a 24% strikeout rate is better than his MLB clip. Trammell has shown off his eye at the plate both in the majors (11.1% walk rate) and Triple-A (14%). Earlier in his career, the former two-sport star — an All-State running back at his Georgia high school — was touted as a plus defender and plus runner, but he’s slowed down as he’s filled out his frame. Statcast ranked him in just the 43rd percentile of MLB players in average sprint speed last year, and his defensive grades from metrics like Outs Above Average and Defensive Runs Saved haven’t lined up with those encouraging scouting reports to date.

Trammell has probably hit for more power than was expected early in his prospect days. His .368 slugging isn’t much to look at, but considering his low batting average, he’s sitting on a .200 ISO in his big-league career. He’s also popped 38 homers in his 812 Triple-A plate appearances.

Since he’s out of minor league options, Trammell needs to either stay on a big league roster or be passed through waivers. The Mariners will have the next five days to explore trade scenarios before determining whether to place Trammell on waivers (a 48-hour process). Within a week, we’ll know whether he’s been traded, claimed, or cleared waivers. If he clears, the Mariners can assign him outright to Triple-A Tacoma, retaining his rights without needing to dedicate a 40-man roster spot to him.