Seattle Mariners News: Fernando Rodney Designated For Assignment By Mariners

Seattle Mariners news indicates that the Fernando Rodney experience is over. This news comes late Saturday, August 22, as MLB.com has revealed that the team has designated Rodney for assignment. A report from KING 5 Sports confirms that Rodney has been DFA’d and fellow reliever Danny Farquhar has been optioned back to Triple-A Tacoma. These are big moves from a franchise that has to go in a new direction.

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Mariners manager Lloyd McClendon had wanted Rodney off the roster for a while, but it seemed that general manager Jack Zduriencik had overruled those wishes. So it forced McClendon to continue using Rodney, especially when the starting pitchers couldn’t get out of the second or third inning many times. A true lack of depth in the bullpen, combined with injuries to several key arms, led to Rodney almost getting over-used by McClendon in recent weeks.

This Seattle Mariners news is going to please a lot of fans of the team, many of which had taken to social media about recent games Fernando Rodney had blown. The 38-year-old reliever might be on the last legs of his MLB career, though he could now get picked up by another team at very little cost. The obvious hope from the Mariners’ front office, is that another team will claim him off waivers before the end of the weekend. That would then put the new franchise on the hook for a prorated portion of his $7 million salary.

Through 54 appearances in the 2015 MLB season, Fernando Rodney had a 5.68 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, and a 5-5 overall record. He had blown six saves so far, and hasn’t been counted on for much in recent weeks. Even in low-stress situations, Rodney was having a lot of trouble with his command. He posted 20 walks in just 50 2/3 innings, a rate that was not suitable for a setup man or closer on any team in baseball.

It would seem that the torch has officially been passed to Carson Smith when it comes to closing games, but he too has been struggling recently. Overuse might have caught up with him as well, which could mean that the Mariners need to bring in an arm or two to pitch out of the bullpen. In conjunction with these moves, the Seattle Mariners have recalled Roenis Elias and Logan Kensing from Tacoma and both will be added to the 25-man roster, with Danny Farquhar likely coming back from Tacoma in September.

[Image Source: Otto Greule, Jr./Getty Images]