Seattle Mariners Trade Tyson Miller to Chicago Cubs For Jake Slaughter

The Seattle Mariners have traded relief pitcher Tyson Miller to the Chicago Cubs in exchange for infielder Jake Slaughter, ESPN's Jeff Passan reported Monday night.

Seattle designated Miller for assignment on Friday when they reinstated starting pitcher Bryan Woo from the 15-day injured list. Miller owned a 3.09 ERA, 0.779 WHIP and 9.3 strikeouts per nine innings in nine appearances this season before he got bumped off the 40-man roster.

Instead of simply losing Miller on the waiver wire, the Mariners were at least able to get something of value back from the Cubs.

Slaughter, 27, is a career minor leaguer. He has played most of his time at third base, but he also has experience at first and has taken on more innings at second over the past two seasons.

Trade news: The Chicago Cubs are acquiring right-handed reliever Tyson Miller from the Seattle Mariners for infielder Jake Slaughter, sources tell ESPN.

Miller was recently DFA’d and will join the Cubs in the big leagues. He has been good: 3.09 ERA, 12-to-1 K-to-BB in 11.2 IP.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) May 14, 2024

The Cubs drafted Slaughter back in 2016, only for the infielder to spurn them in favor of a college career at LSU. Chicago selected him again in the 18th round of the 2018 MLB Draft, at which point he finally agreed to join the organization.

Slaughter slowly worked his way through the Cubs' farm system, not making his Triple-A debut until 2023. After batting .243 with 22 home runs, 77 RBI, 16 stolen bases and an .823 OPS across 104 games with Triple-A Iowa last season, Slaughter was hitting .297 with five home runs, 17 RBI, 10 stolen bases and an .879 OPS through 32 games with the team this season.

It remains to be seen if or when the Mariners plan to add Slaughter to their MLB roster. Although Josh Rojas and Luis Urías have been holding down the fort at third base, second baseman Jorge Polanco left Monday's game early due to right hamstring tightness.

Miller, meanwhile, will be joining the Cubs in the big leagues, per Passan's report.

The 28-year-old right-hander was drafted by Chicago in 2016, and he made his MLB debut with the club in 2020. He spent 2022 with the Texas Rangers, then split 2023 with the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets before signing a minor league deal with the Mariners in November.

Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by liking us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.

You can also follow Sam Connon on Twitter @SamConnon.