Josh Naylor joins Mariners following blockbuster trade from Diamondbacks

The Seattle Mariners made a major move a week before the trade deadline by trading for Arizona Diamondbacks infielder Josh Naylor on Thursday. The Diamondbacks have been underwhelming this season, and with their playoff aspirations slipping away, the National League West team decided to cash in on the All-Star first baseman.

Naylor, expected to be a free agent after the season, was traded to the Mariners in exchange for future prospects. The Diamondbacks received Ashton Izzi and Brandyn Garcia, the 13th and 16th-ranked prospects, respectively, in the Mariners' farm system.

The infielder made his MLB debut with the San Diego Padres in 2019 and was traded to the Cleveland Guardians with Austin Hedges and Cal Quantrill for Mike Clevinger, Greg Allen and Matt Waldron.

Following his first All-Star season with the Guardians, where he hit a career-high 31 homers, he was traded to the Diamondbacks in December.

He is slashing .292/.360/.447 with 11 home runs, 59 RBIs and 11 stolen bases since his trade to Arizona. His move to Seattle provides the Mariners with much-needed firepower at first base. He will replace Luke Raley, who is likely to move back to the outfield.

Mariners reportedly interested in Diamondbacks third baseman after Josh Naylor move

The Mariners are six games behind the Houston Astros in the American League East and are tied for the second AL Wild Card spot with the Boston Red Sox. They are reportedly looking to add more firepower by signing Eugenio Suarez.

The Diamondbacks third baseman, who is in the final year of his contract, has been attracting plenty of interest from teams like the New York Yankees, Chicago Cubs and the Detroit Tigers ahead of the trade deadline.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash