Donovan Solano Agrees to One-Year, $3.5 Million Deal with Seattle Mariners

Posted on January 14, 2025 by Tom Castaneda

Donovan Solano is headed to the Emerald City.

The 37-year-old Colombian professional baseball infielder has agreed to a $3.5 million, one-year contract with the Seattle Mariners.

Solano can earn an additional $1 million in performance bonuses for plate appearances: $200,000 each for 300, 350, 400, 450 and 500.

Solano hit .286 with eight homers and 35 RBIs in 96 games with the San Diego Padres last year, including .302 (32 for 106) with four home runs against left-handers.

He is a .279 career hitter with 40 homers and 279 RBIs in 11 major league seasons with the Miami Marlins (2012-15), the New York Yankees (2016), San Francisco (2019-21), Cincinnati (2022), Minnesota (2023) and San Diego.

Since 2019 Solano is hitting .294 with 31 homers and 180 RBIs.

“Donovan has been among the most underrated hitters in the game over the past six years,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said in a statement.

Solano also gets a hotel suite on road trips. He would receive $50,000 for election to the MLB All-Star team and $25,000 for selection. Solano also can earn $150,000 for MVP, $100,000 for World Series MVP and $50,000 each for League Championship Series MVP, Gold Glove or Silver Slugger.

Left-hander Austin Kitchen was designated for assignment to open a roster spot.

He made his major league debut for Miami at Tampa Bay Rays on July 30, went 0-1 with a 14.14 ERA in one start and three relief appearances and was claimed off waivers by Seattle on September 9.

Amed Rosario Agrees to One-Year Contract with Washington Nationals

Posted on January 8, 2025 by Tom Castaneda

Amed Rosario is heading to The District.

The Washington Nationals have agreed to terms with the 29-year-old Dominican professional baseball and utility player on a one-year contract.

Financial terms haven’t been disclosed, but MLB.com reported the deal is worth $2 million.

Rosario, 29, batted .280 with three home runs, 32 RBIs and 13 steals in 103 games between the Tampa Bay Rays, Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati Reds in 2024.

A versatile defender, Rosario manned several different positions — including playing 27 games at second base, 26 in right field, 15 at third base and 14 at shortstop last season.

Rosario is a career .273 hitter with 63 homers, 366 RBIs and 449 runs scored for the New York Mets, (2017-20), Cleveland Guardians (2021-23), Dodgers (2023-24), Rays (2024) and Reds (2024).

Willy Adames Agrees to 7-Year, $182 Million Contract with San Francisco Giants

Posted on December 7, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Willy Adames has $182 million reasons to smile…

The 29-year-old Dominican professional baseball shortstop has agreed to a seven-year, $182 million contract with the San Francisco Giants, the largest outlay in franchise history, per ESPN.

Adames was the Giants’ top target this winter.

With the best free agent on the market, Juan Soto, likely to choose his team in the next 48 hours, San Francisco struck a deal with Adames, who was also being considered by teams in the running for Soto.

Adames has been a consistent presence in the middle of the Milwaukee Brewers‘ lineup for the past four seasons after arriving in a trade from the Tampa Bay Rays.

Adames’ 30-homer power is rare for a shortstop and the Giants have struggled to find a replacement for Brandon Crawford, who manned the position for 13 seasons.

The deal, which is pending a physical, breaks the franchise-record $167 million given to catcher Buster Posey, who is in his first year as the Giants’ president of baseball operations. It will include a $22 million signing bonus, according to sources.

Adames had career highs in home runs (32), RBIs (112) and stolen bases (21) in 2024 while finishing fifth in FanGraphs wins above replacement among shortstops. Adames also tied the major league record for most three-run home runs in a single season with 13, helping the Brewers to the National League Central title.

Other teams were considering using Adames as a third baseman, but the Giants will hope his glove continues to match his offensive output. Over his seven-year career, Adames has slashed .248/.322/.444 with 150 home runs, 472 RBIs and 51 stolen bases.

Tampa Bay Rays Trade Isaac Paredes to Chicago Cubs

Posted on July 29, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Isaac Paredes is headed to The Windy City.

The 25-year-old Mexican professional baseball third baseman and MLB All-Star is being traded by the Tampa Bay Rays to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Christopher Morel, a 25-year-old Dominican fellow third baseman, per ESPN.

The Cubs are also sending two prospects — pitchers Ty Johnson and Hunter Bigge — to the Rays in the deal, sources told ESPN.

Paredes immediately will step in as the Cubs’ starting third baseman, as the team has been searching for an answer at that position since moving on from Kris Bryant in 2021.

Morel has played there this season with varying degrees of improvement on defense, but his offensive output stalled somewhat after a promising first two years of his career.

After hitting .247 with 26 homers last season, Morel is hitting .199 with a team leading 18 home runs this season.

Paredes, who is hitting .247 with 16 home runs and 19 doubles this season, was originally signed by the Cubs but never played for them as he was traded to the Detroit Tigers in a 2017 deadline deal.

Both players are under team control for several more seasons before reaching free agency.

Bigge just made his MLB debut this month after being drafted in the 12th round in 2019. Johnson was taken in the 15th round of the 2023 draft and has been pitching at the Class-A level this season.

Both teams are in transition mode. The Rays have made several deals ahead of the trade deadline, shipping out reliever Jason Adam on Sunday as well as Randy Arozarena and Zach Eflin earlier in the week.

The Cubs, who began Sunday in last place in the NL Central, acquired reliever Nate Pearson on Saturday, vowing to rework their roster with future years in mind.

Adolis Garcia to Take Part in This Year’s Home Run Derby

Posted on July 10, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Adolis Garcia is ready to swing for the fences…

The 31-year-old Cuban professional baseball outfielder , nicknamed “El Bombi,” will represent the host Texas Rangers in Monday night’s Home Run Derby at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas.

García was knocked out by Tampa Bay Rays slugger Randy Arozarena last year in the first round at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park.

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez also confirmed he would participate during Wednesday night’s Phillies-Dodgers broadcast.

This will be Hernandez’s first time in the Derby.

Two Rangers have won the Derby: Ruben Sierra and Cincinnati’s Eric Davis were co-winners in 1989 at Anaheim Stadium, and Juan Gonzalez won in 1993 at Baltimore’s Camden Yards.

The New York Mets’Pete Alonso, Philadelphia‘sAlec Bohm, Baltimore‘sGunnar Henderson, Atlanta‘sMarcell Ozuna, Cleveland‘s José Ramírez and Kansas City‘s Bobby Witt Jr. previously committed to the eight-player field.

Alonso will participate in his fifth straight Home Run Derby, trying to win for the third time.

Amed Rosario Agrees to One-Year, $1.5 Million Deal with Tampa Bay Rays

Posted on February 20, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Amed Rosario is celebrating a ray(s) of sunshine…

The 28-year-old Dominican professional baseball shortstop has signed a one-year contract with the Tampa Bay Rays.

The deal is for $1.5 million, according to ESPN.

Rosario will bring a strong bat against left-handed pitching and should get at-bats at shortstop, second base and potentially corner-outfield spots.

Rosario adds to Tampa Bay’s infield depth behind shortstop Jose Caballero and second baseman Brandon Lowe. The Rays acquired Caballero in a January trade with Seattle.

He was traded from the Cleveland Guardians to the Los Angeles Dodgers for Noah Syndergaard before the 2023 trade deadline. He hit a combined .263 in 142 games between the two teams, with 70 runs, 58 RBIs and 15 stolen bases.

Rosario broke into the majors with the New York Mets in 2017. He was traded to Cleveland in January 2021 as part of a multiplayer package for Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco.

Rosario is a .272 hitter with 60 homers and 334 RBI in 839 career games. He set career highs with a .287 batting average, 15 homers and 72 RBI in 2019 with the Mets. He led the majors with nine triples in 2022 with Cleveland.

Christian Arroyo Agrees to Minor League Deal with Milwaukee Brewers

Posted on January 31, 2024 by Tom Castaneda

Things are brewing for Christian Arroyo.

The 28-year-old half-Puerto Rican professional baseball player has agreed to a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers that includes an invitation to major league spring training.

An infielder, Arroyo hit .241 with a .268 on-base percentage, 3 homers and 24 RBIs in 66 games for the Boston Red Soxlast season. He played primarily second base but also made appearances at shortstop and third base.

He also has big league experience at first base and right field.

Arroyo has a .252 batting average, a .299 on-base percentage, 24 homers and 120 RBIs in 295 regular-season games. He has played for San Francisco (2017), Tampa Bay (2018-19), Cleveland (2020) and Boston (2020-23).

Texas Rangers Sign Diego Castillo to Minor League Deal

Posted on December 27, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Diego Castillo has joined the Texas Rangers organization…

The 29-year-old Dominican professional baseball pitcher, a veteran reliever, is among seven free agents who’ve signed minor league contracts with the Texas Rangers that include invitations to spring training with the World Series champions.

The Rangers announced the signings Wednesday of Castillo and two other right-handed pitchers, Gerardo Carrillo and Jesus Tinoco, along with catcher Andrew Knapp and outfielders Sandro Fabian, Elier Hernandez and Derek Hill.

Castillo has a 24-18 record with 35 saves and 3.22 ERA over six big league seasons with Tampa Bay Rays (2018-21) and Seattle Mariners (2021-23), with opponents hitting only .200 against him. The right-hander, who turns 30 on January 18, allowed six earned runs over 8⅔ innings in eight relief appearances for the Mariners last season.

Tinoco had a 2.93 ERA in 38 appearances this year for the Saitama Seibu Lions of the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization in Japan. Before that, he made 48 appearances over four big league seasons with the Colorado Rockies (2019-21), Miami Marlins (2021) and Texas (2022). He pitched in 17 games for the Rangers, and in one of his two starts allowed the 62nd home run hit by New York Yankees star Aaron Judge to break the AL single-season record.

Rangers pitchers and catchers will have their first spring training workout in Surprise, Arizona, on February 14.

The first full-squad workout is scheduled for February 19.

Emilio Pagan Signs Two-Year Deal with Cincinnati Reds

Posted on November 30, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Emilio Pagan is headed to Ohio…

The 32-year-old Puerto Rican professional baseball player has signed with the Cincinnati Reds on a two-year deal for the right-handed reliever.

The deal is reportedly worth $16,000,000 and includes both a player option after the first season and performance bonuses.

The Cincinnati Reds are expecting to spend money this offseason according to Bob Castellini, with the signing of Pagan considered the first of several deals the team makes this offseason to add to their 82-win club from 2023 that’s full of young talent.

Pagan spent the 2023 season with the Minnesota Twins and had one of the best years of his career.

He pitched in 66 games and threw 69.1 innings while posting a 2.99 ERA, giving up 45 hits – including 5 home runs – to go along with 21 walks and 65 strikeouts.

He has played in the MLB for the Tampa Bay Rays, Seattle Mariners, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres and Minnesota Twins. He plays for the Puerto Rico national baseball team.

Tampa Bay Rays’ Star Yandy Diaz Wins His First Silver Slugger Award

Posted on November 10, 2023 by Tom Castaneda

Yandy Diaz is celebrating his first silver moment…

The 32-year-old Cuban professional baseball player and Tampa Bay Rays star has won his first Silver Slugger Award, which is awarded annually to the best offensive player at each position in both the American League and the National League, as determined by the coaches and managers of Major League Baseball.

Diaz, who has played for the Rays since 2019, won the award in the American League’s first base position. He was this year’s AL batting champion.

Seattle Mariners’ star Julio Rodriguez has picked up his second Silver Slugger Award.

The 22-year-old Dominican professional baseball center fielder won one of the outfield awards in the American League.

In the National League voting, 25-year-old Venezuelan professional baseball player William Contreras, who plays for the Milwaukee Brewers, has claimed his maiden Silver Slugger.

NL batting champion Luis Arraez (.354) of the Miami Marlins won his second in a row after winning in 2022 with the AL‘s Minnesota Twins.

Atlanta Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr. collected his third Silver Slugger Award in the outfield, alongside San Diego Padres’ Juan Soto, who claimed his fourth award.

Francisco Lindor, the 29-year-old Puerto Rican professional baseball shortstop for the New York Mets, picked up the third Silver Slugger prize of his career.

The Texas Rangers received their first American League Offensive Team of the Year honor.

Louisville Slugger presented the Atlanta Braves with the inaugural National League Offensive Team of the Year award as determined by a combination of offensive statistics and a fan vote for finalists between September 25-October 1.

Both the Rangers and Braves led their leagues in runs, hits, home runs, RBIs, batting average, slugging percentage and OPS.

Here’s the full list of winners:

American League
C: Adley Rutschman (Baltimore)
1B: Yandy Diaz (Tampa Bay)
2B: Marcus Semien (Texas)
SS: Corey Seager (Texas)
3B: Rafael Devers (Boston)
OF: Kyle Tucker (Houston), Julio Rodriguez (Seattle), Luis Robert Jr. (Chicago)
DH: Shohei Ohtani (Los Angeles)
UTIL: Gunnar Henderson (Baltimore)

National League
C: William Contreras (Milwaukee)
1B: Matt Olson (Atlanta)
2B: Luis Arraez (Miami)
SS: Francisco Lindor (New York)
3B: Austin Riley (Atlanta)
OF: Ronald Acuna Jr. (Atlanta), Mookie Betts (Los Angeles), Juan Soto (San Diego)
DH: Bryce Harper (Philadelphia)
UTIL: Cody Bellinger (Chicago)

Hispanically Yours

Celebrating the Latino Influence

Tag Archives: Tampa Bay Rays