In need of a change, M’s call up Jason Vosler

A new face arrives in Seattle

In the wake of Ty France’s placement on irrevocable waivers, Seattle has opted to call upon the help of Jason Vosler, a journeyman infielder who has been leading the Tacoma Rainiers offensively and provides some pop to a team that’s greatly lacking any offensive output.

Vosler has seen time at the corner infield spots as well as DH this season, posting solid power numbers and enough plate discipline to get the job done. With roughly equal production to his teammate Spencer Packard in a larger sample size, Vosler provides the M’s an opportunity to insert a bat into their bench rotation without sacrificing the development of some of their more polished prospects. Guys like Tyler Locklear and Ryan Bliss (who was sent to Tacoma to make room for Vosler) should be seeing the field on a daily basis to optimize their development track, and giving Vosler a roster spot allows them to do that while still providing the team roughly equivalent production.

Largely a fringy big leaguer for his career, Vosler has spent time in the bigs with both San Francisco and Cincinnati, finding marginal success in limited time. His best run in the majors came in 2022 with the Giants, a 36 game stretch where he posted a 129 OPS+ at the age of 28. Now 30 and having one of his better seasons at the AAA level, Vosler owns a top-25 xwOBA value of qualified AAA hitters and will look to provide a spark to a withering Seattle offense. It’s likely that Vosler is acting as a stop gap before the club can pounce on some bats at the deadline, but the bar for a successful stint in Seattle is set pretty darn low. Even league average hitting with an ounce of defensive versatility acts as a major upgrade for this ball club, and Vosler’s got a shot to do just that.

Best of luck, Jason. I hope you’re the unlikely hero this team desperately needs.