Seattle Mariners cut DJ Peterson, move on from former first-round draft pick

The Seattle Mariners just designated DJ Peterson for assignment, possibly ending his tenure with the franchise. The Mariners decided to cut Peterson from the 40-man roster in order to clear a spot for outfielder Leonys Martin, who is getting a promotion from Triple-A Tacoma. Mitch Haniger had to be placed on the disabled list after getting hit in the face by a pitch on Saturday (July 30), necessitating that the Mariners recall Martin.

As Peterson has been designated for assignment, the Mariners now have 10 days to either trade, release, or reassign the veteran minor leaguer. This wasn’t what the organization had hoped to see from the 2013 first-round draft pick, but he had not been performing well enough in the minor leagues to warrant a continued spot on the 40-man roster. Now the Mariners will see if another team is interested in dealing with him.

What were DJ Peterson’s minor league stats?

Over his minor league career with the Seattle Mariners, DJ Peterson posted a combined .269 batting average, .322 on-base percentage, and .793 OPS.

This season with the Tacoma Rainiers, Peterson appeared in 103 games for the team, posting a .264 batting average over 421 plate appearances. He also had 12 home runs, 54 RBIs, and six stolen bases to his credit.

There had been a lot of hope that DJ Peterson was going to become the third baseman of the future for the franchise, but the emergence of Kyle Seager and a lack of performance in the minor leagues cost him that chance at playing in Safeco Field. Posting a .264 batting average with 19 home runs and 78 RBIs during the 2016 season wasn’t enough to get Peterson a September call-up either.

Is Peterson now done with the Mariners?

It’s possible that when 10 days have come to an end, that the Seattle Mariners are able to reassign DJ Peterson to Triple-A Tacoma.

He would be able to get back in the lineup for one last push at making the big league team. It’s also possible that a team could offer a minor league pitcher for him and Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto will move on from having Peterson on the roster.

The Mariners are trailing in the Wild Card standings and are trying to make moves to finally get back to the postseason. Adding a veteran outfielder like Leonys Martin to the bench will certainly help in that effort, even if the team has tried this before. Dipoto continues to try to add value pieces, evidenced by the trade for David Phelps from the Miami Marlins. DJ Peterson is now a casualty of those moves, though, which could frustrate some Seattle Mariners fans who had been hoping to see big things from him.