According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Diamondbacks and Mariners are among the teams “in contention” to acquire Marlins closer Tanner Scott. At least 12 teams have reportedly expressed some level of interest in acquiring Scott, making the Diamondbacks and Mariners the latest publicly known suitors to join the Orioles, Dodgers, Phillies, Yankees and Royals.
Scott threw another scoreless inning last night in Miami’s 6-2 win over the Brewers, extending his scoreless inning streak to 17 2/3 innings. For the season as a whole, Scott posted an impressive 1.18 ERA in 45 2/3 innings with a 28.7% strikeout rate and generally similarly good numbers, with the notable exception of his 14.8% walk rate, which is just shy of being the worst in baseball.
Those control issues mean Scott isn’t a sure bet he’ll pitch the ninth inning, but he’s had two straight strong seasons as the Marlins’ closer. With Miami in sellers mode and Scott set to become a free agent at the end of the season, the left-hander is the favorite to be moved at the July 30 trade deadline, and not surprisingly, several big teams have approached the Marlins about acquiring Scott.
In fact, Arizona had already completed a trade with Miami two days earlier for another left-handed reliever, swapping AJ Pack for two top prospects. Heyman’s report doesn’t specify when the Diamondbacks inquired about Scott, so it’s possible the Diamondbacks turned to Pack as a backup plan if the Marlins’ asking price for Scott was too high. On the other hand, it’s easy to make the argument that Arizona’s shaky relief corps needs more than just Pack, so it’s easy to imagine this trade setting the stage for future negotiations after the Marlins explore what other teams are willing to give up for Scott.
Diamondbacks GM Mike Hazen told reporters (including Arizona Sports’ Alex Weiner) that the Snakes could add another relief pitcher and remain focused on acquiring pitchers before turning their attention to acquiring position players. “We’ll continue to be involved in all markets. You never know when an opportunity might present itself,” Hazen said.
The Mariners are another team that has already been very active ahead of July 30, having acquired Randy Arozarena and Yimi Garcia in trades with the Rays and Blue Jays, respectively. As with the Diamondbacks-Pac trade, Seattle’s acquisition of Garcia would not preclude the Mariners from pursuing Scott, but the Mariners need more offensive power than pitching. Depending on how well-stocked the Mariners are and how much financial flexibility they have, Seattle may look to add hitters going forward rather than adding Scott to an already-very solid relief corps.