The Mariners announced that they have claimed righty Dominic Leone off waivers, a move that was reported earlier on Thursday. They also announced that righty Devin Sweet has been designated for assignment to open a spot for Leone on their 40-man roster.
Sweet, 26, was just selected to the roster about six weeks ago. He made two appearances for the big league club, allowing two earned runs in two innings, before getting optioned to Triple-A Tacoma. He made seven appearances for that club with a 2.57 earned run average but has now lost his 40-man roster spot to make room for the veteran Leone.
An undrafted free agent who signed with the M’s in 2018, he climbed his way up to Double-A by the end of last year. Prior to his call-up to the majors, he tossed 35 Double-A innings this year with a 1.54 ERA, 34.6% strikeout rate and 5.9% walk rate.
The M’s will now have to put Sweet on waivers in the coming days since the trade deadline has passed. He is using the first of his three option years here in 2023 but will still have two remaining for the future. He also has just a handful of service days, giving him at least six seasons of future control. Those factors and his strong Double-A work earlier this year should give him some appeal to other clubs around the league, especially with several spots opening up with expanded September rosters and various waiver claims being made this week. But if he were to go unclaimed, he would stick with the Mariners as a non-roster depth, not having the right to elect free agency.
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