Mariners snatch UTIL Miles Mastrobuoni from Chicago Cubs, DFA C Nick Raposo

A small swap for depth.

The Seattle Mariners announced Tuesday that they have acquired UTIL Miles Mastrobuoni from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for cash considerations. In a corresponding 40-man roster move, they’ve designated C Nick Raposo for assignment.

The 29 year old Mastrobuoni has played every position but first base and catcher as a pro, handling a true utility role in parts of three big league seasons with both the Cubs and the Tampa Bay Rays. He’s struggled to make an impact with the bat despite playing all over the field defensively, with just a 56 wRC+ in 272 plate appearances across 119 games. His .219/.279/.263 line betrays the lack of pop he’s threatened big league pitchers with. Tampa Bay selected him with the 420th overall pick of the 2016 draft, the 14th pick of the 14th round. Despite hitting at essentially every level, Mastrobuoni was particularly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, as he reached Triple-A Durham in 2019 in position for a surefire 2020 debut that never came. Instead, he went from a 23 year old on the cusp of the pros to a 25 year old with already-average athleticism struggling to set himself apart in a 2021 Rays system that overflowed with infield options. By the time he at last debuted in 2022, the Nevada product was not in a position to secure plate appearances.

Dealt to Chicago that winter for minor league RHP Alfredo Zárraga, the Cubbies have found more work for Mastrobuoni, albeit sporadic and hamstrung by a severe struggle to damage the baseball. 2024 was a mess all around for the Bay Area kid, who was born in San Ramon, CA, and he’d been DFA’d recently to make space for former Mariners reliever RHP Matt Festa. With an option year remaining, Mastrobuoni fleshes out the depth of Seattle’s infield in particular, but we’re still waiting to see if the player who hit .300/.377/.469 in a full season at Triple-A Durham in 2022 with 16 homers and 23 steals in 26 attempts is remotely replicable at the big league level.

Raposo was, like Austin Kitchen a day ago, churned as part of this winter’s efforts to pour even just a few additional droplets of water into the depths of the system. The will-be 27 year old has struggled to hit in a meaningful capacity at any level, but graded out acceptably as a defender in Triple-A Buffalo a year ago as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays system. Clubs are always hungry for backstop depth, but there’s a real chance he clears waivers and takes on Tacoma this season.