Ten days after the Philadelphia Phillies traded him to the Seattle Mariners for Jean Segura, Carlos Santana is on the move again. The Mariners traded Santana to the Seattle Mariners for his former teammate Edwin Encarnacion. The Tribe also lands first baseman Jake Bauers from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Cuban first base prospect Yandy Diaz, minor league relief pitcher Cole Sulser and a player to be named later. In addition to Encarnacion, the Mariners get a draft pick and cash.
After playing one season for the Phillies and being a Mariner on paper, Santana is undoubtedly happy to be on familiar terrain having played with the Tribe for eight seasons. But what kind of Indians team will Santana be a part of? The Indians are likely to trade two time Cy Young Award winner Corey Kluber and Trevor Bauer on top of their top slugger. While Encarnacion batted a modest .246 he slammed 32 HR and 107 RBI in 2018. Encarnacion has hit 30 or more HR in each of the last seven seasons and drove in 100 or more runs in six of the last seven seasons.
Do the Mariners plan on keeping Encarnacion or will they flip him for prospects the night before Christmas? At this point, the Mariners are sending mixed messages about 2019. In this sense, it is fitting that Mariners GM Jerry DiPoto pulled this deal off in a hospital bed.
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