Mariners activate OF/1B Luke Raley from injured list, designate 1B Rowdy Tellez for assignment

The decision has come, and it’s a big one.

The Seattle Mariners announced Friday morning that they have activated OF/1B Luke Raley from the 10-day injured list and have designated 1B/DH Rowdy Tellez for assignment. The move comes after Raley missed just shy of two months with an oblique injury. His return has taken on an increasingly urgent tenor, as Seattle’s time without both Raley and Victor Robles pushed the club to unsuccessful backup plans, including a dismal run of play from Leody Taveras and overexposure of role players like Dylan Moore and Miles Mastrobuoni that contributed to their sagging recent numbers.

However, the corresponding move at hand is a signal as to the club’s expectation for Raley’s return. In cutting Tellez, the M’s are pulling the plug on the only thing that resembled a plan from the team at the first base position this year besides Donovan Solano. It was a high-risk gamble by the club, gambling on Tellez to be a strong-side platoon and exceed his performance in every previous full season. Unfortunately, while Rowdy has had some massive moments for the club, the collective performance has been poor. A .208/.249/.434 line with 11 homers and a 4.3%/26.5% K%/BB% is reflective of a player whose low success rates ran their course. While he demonstrated strong acuity for picking throws in the dirt, he could not defensively overwhelm a 93 wRC+ and -0.4 fWAR, and despite a promising xwOBA, as a low-speed, fly ball hitter, Tellez did not have a strong case to stay on the roster.

Because of his departure, it seems likely Raley will play more first base upon his return, with the M’s choosing to keep both Solano and OF Dominic Canzone for the moment. Canzone and Raley overlap in many ways, however Raley’s ability to handle 1B and his foot speed help him get an edge. However, that OF ability is more valuable than Tellez’s defensive options, and likely gave Canzone a boost. Solano’s retaining is the one Tellez might have a gripe about, but as a righty bat he allows the platoon-happy M’s to continue their line change approach more easily. In fairness to the 37 year old Colombian, Solano also has been much more potent of late, albeit hard-pressed to clamber out of the hole he dug in April.

Raley has been a genuinely excellent hitter over the past three seasons, both with Seattle and Tampa Bay prior. His deployment has been a platooned one, however, and it is to be seen whether the thin cupboard of options as listed above will push the M’s to give him a chance to earn more time against southpaws. Tonight’s matchup against LHP Matthew Boyd will be a good first test.