The San Diego Padres made their third significant trade of July, this time trading veteran outfielder Chris Denorfia to the Seattle Mariners. In return the Padres received two players: OF Abraham Almonte and RHP Stephen Kohlscheen.
Denorfia, 34, signed with the Padres as a minor league costless agent in 2009. He has played parts of five seasons with the Padres, and has posted a very solid .275/.332/.399 line in his time in San Diego. Denorfia is a costless agent after the 2014 season.
Almonte, 25, is a player out of the Dominican Republic. For the season, he has produced a triple-slash line of .198/.248/.292, in 113 plate appearances with Seattle. He has spent the bulk of the season with Triple-A Tacoma, and is hitting .267 with six home runs. Almonte was originally drafted by the New York Yankees, and was traded to Seattle in 2013. Prior to the 2014 season, Almonte was ranked as the Mariners #17 prospect by Baseball America.
Kohlscheen, 25, is a 6'6 right-hander, who was the Mariners 45th round pick in 2010. Kohlscheen is not a guy that has a ton of velocity on his fastball, but still gets outs regularly. His heater ranges from 91-93 on the radar gun. Kohlscheen has split the season between AA and AAA, and has a 3-1 record, with a 2.70 ERA in 38 games. Kohlscheen is not considered a prospect, but does have an impressive 5.50 strikeout-to-walk ratio on the year.
No roster move has been made official as of yet, but one would have to think that Almonte will replace Denorfia on the active roster. Almonte can also play second base.
For Seattle, they gain a solid veteran bat who hits lefties well, and plays above-average defense on the corner outfield positions.