[DD Martin]

Mariners Announce Trade
July 28th, 2021
USA Today

Like two teams in a pickup game on the sandlot, the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros swapped four players on Tuesday in the middle of a three-game series against each other.

The Astros sent infielder Abraham Toro and relief pitcher Joe Smith to the Mariners for relievers Kendall Graveman and Rafael Montero.

Unlike most deals leading up to MLB's July 30 trade deadline, this one involved two teams in the same division who are very much in contention for playoff spots. At the start of play on Tuesday, the Astros led the AL West by five games over the Oakland A's and by six over the Mariners -- with Seattle one game out of the second American League wild-card spot.

The key player in the deal is Graveman, who has been one of the best bullpen arms in the majors this season, pitching to a 0.82 ERA with four wins and 10 saves. He and Montero, who opened the season as the Mariners' closer, will help bolster an Astros bullpen that had been shaky lately.

Seattle GM Jerry DiPoto told reporters Tuesday that the deal may not make sense by itself, but the team is planning additional moves before Friday's deadline.

In Toro, the Mariners receive a promising 24-year-old third baseman who's hitting .211 with six home runs and 20 RBI in 109 at-bats -- most of them coming while starting third baseman Alex Bregman has been out with a hamstring injury.

Smith, 37, missed all of last season with a ruptured Achilles tendon. He has posted a 7.48 ERA in 27 appearances this year.

Seattle Times Article
Same Day
By Ryan Divish

Marco Gonzales stared at the concrete floor of the Mariners dugout, occasionally lifting his gaze to the field of T-Mobile Park and revealing puffy eyes red from tears.

He appeared to be listening as manager Scott Servais intently explained a decision that neither he nor his teammates wanted to believe was real and a roster move that upon first glance does little to help the Mariners in their quest to secure the first postseason appearance since 2001.

And when the conversation ended, Gonzales stalked away like a student released from detention, clearly unsatisfied with the experience and the explanation.

Less than 24 hours after an improbable 11-8 come-from-behind victory over the Houston Astros, which included overcoming a 7-0 deficit in the third inning, a go-ahead grand slam from Dylan Moore and the benches nearly emptying after J.P. Crawford was hit by a pitch, all the good feeling from the best win of the season was replaced by confusion, anger and frustration at the Mariners front office.

Early Tuesday afternoon, Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto completed a trade with those same Astros, sending closer Kendall Graveman, who pitched the eighth inning and got the win Monday night, and reliever Rafael Montero, who was recently designated for assignment, to the opposing clubhouse. In exchange, the Mariners received infielder Abraham Toro and veteran right-handed reliever Joe Smith.

Public reaction has been mixed on local sports talk and with fans in the stands. Many wonder what exactly the Mariners are up to.
The Mariners promptly drop the final two games of the homestand against the Houston Astros on Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon and see their record drop to 55-48.