We're deep into prime transaction time in the 2024-25 MLB offseason. Players have already hit unrestricted free agency, the non-tender deadline has come and gone and there have even been a few trades going down around the league.
Now is the time of year when clubs begin to round out their minor league depth while simultaneously looking to upgrade their big league roster. One of the players the Philadelphia Phillies only just recently lost to free agency has found his new home for the 2025 campaign.
Former Phillies reliever Yunior Marte has signed a minor league deal with the Mariners
According to independent journalist/reporter Francys Romero, right-hander Yunior Marte has inked a minor league deal with the Seattle Mariners. He will receive an invitation to big league spring training once that time rolls around next calendar year.
Yunior Marte signed with the Seattle Mariners on a minor league deal, per sources.
— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) November 23, 2024
The deal includes an invitation to MLB Spring Training camp. pic.twitter.com/9ZznHKIKZU
Marte, 29, spent parts of the past two seasons on the Phillies but struggled immensely to carve out any sort of consistency in his results. The right-hander made a combined 63 relief appearances for the club but managed to post just a 5.79 ERA along with a 5.06 FIP and 73 ERA+, which puts him 27 percent below league-average on the mound.
Easily the most productive part of Marte's tenure on the Phillies came in the form of his 18-game showing in Triple-A back in the 2023 campaign. He posted a 1.80 ERA with 24 strikeouts in 20 innings before earning his first promotion to the big-league squad.
Ever since then, it's been a downhill slide. His ERA has been no lower than 5.03 at any stops, and he also just finished a stint in the Dominican Winter League where he stunk up the joint in four outings. Across 3 1/3 innings of work, Marte surrendered five runs (three earned) on four hits while both walking and striking out two batters.
The Mariners have historically done a solid job of developing pitchers they've drafted and they have just as much success grabbing players either off of waivers or in minor league free agency just to turn them into relief weapons. While we haven't seen much promise out of Marte at the big league level, don't be surprised to see Seattle figure him out.