The Snake Pit Get A New Closer! Arizona Diamondbacks Land Former Mariners Stopper in Massive Deal
Former Seattle Mariners closer Kendall Graveman found his newest baseball home on Friday, agreeing to a one-year deal with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Per Jesse Rogers of ESPN on social media:
News: Free agent reliever Kendall Graveman is in agreement with the Arizona Diamondbacks on a 1 year deal, sources tell ESPN. Graveman is fully recovered from a shoulder injury and adds a needed piece to the Az bullpen. The deal is pending a physical.
The 34-year-old is a nine-year veteran of the Toronto Blue Jays, Oakland Athletics, Mariners, Houston Astros and Chicago White Sox.
Formerly a starter, he transitioned to a full-time reliever in 2020 with the Mariners, revolutionizing his career. When healthy, he features an upper-90s power sinker and a slider. He was 4-0 with the Mariners in 2021, pitching to a 0.82 ERA in 30 games along with 10 saves. The Mariners traded him to the Astros that summer in a deal that brought Joe Smith and Abraham Toro to Seattle. It was a controversial deal at the time since the Mariners were still in playoff contention, and they ended up missing the playoffs on the final day of the regular season.
He signed a two-year deal with the White Sox before the 2022 season and then was traded back to Houston in 2023. With Chicago, he was 6-8 in 110 games. He had a 3.30 ERA and 14 saves. Lifetime, he’s 37-43 with a 3.95.
Graveman isn’t the only former M’s closer to find a second act in Arizona, as the M’s traded Paul Sewald to the D’Backs in 2023. He’s since moved onto the Cleveland Guardians.
