In yet another move that was announced Friday night, the Mariners swapped minor league right-hander Zack Littell for Yankees’ left-hander James Pazos.
Pazos, 25, has logged just 8 1/3 innings in the Yankees’ bullpen over the last two seasons, but emerged as a dominant force at the Triple-A level with a 2.63 ERA and 41 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings in 2016. His control could use some fine-turning, but he should still give the Mariners some of the power they’re looking for in a left-handed reliever without the hefty price tag that accompanies a high-end arm like Aroldis Chapman.
At 21 years old, right-handed starter Zack Littell has yet to break into the major leagues, though he’s been the model of consistency in the Mariners’ rookie and Single-A circuits over the last four seasons. During 2016, he pitched in back-to-back stints with Clinton and High-A Bakersfield, pairing a 2.66 ERA with an 8.5 K/9 and 1.8 BB/9 over 165 2/3 innings.