Former Blue Jay Rowdy Tellez DFA’d by Mariners

So far this season, Tellez is slashing .208/.249/.434 with 11 home runs in 185 plate appearances for a 93 wRC+. He’s just two shy of matching his total from 2024, where he hit 13 in 421 plate appearances. 

The left-handed batting first baseman had an abysmal start to his season, slashing .111/.154/.222 with one home run in his first 39 plate appearances. Something changed when he faced his former team, as Tellez hit a home run in three consecutive games against the Blue Jays in mid-April.

Over the last two months, Tellez is slashing .234/.274/.489 with 10 home runs in 146 plate appearances, giving him a 116 wRC+ in that stretch. Despite having a ton of power, Tellez doesn’t strike out like a regular power-only hitter, as his 26.5 K% this season is his highest since his first two seasons with the Blue Jays. Over the past six seasons, Tellez has a 21.4 K%.

That said, Tellez doesn’t draw a ton of walks, as he has an 8.5 BB% in the past six seasons, which gives him an on-base percentage below .300. Paired with a batting average that usually sits in the low .200’s, Tellez relies on his power to be an effective big leaguer.

Tellez spent parts of four seasons with the Blue Jays, including a good season during the COVID-shortened 2020, where he slashed .283/.346/.540 with eight home runs in 127 plate appearances for a 132 wRC+. With the emergence of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. as the Jays’ everyday first baseman in 2021, paired with Tellez’s struggles, Tellez was traded to the Milwaukee Brewers for Bowden Francis and Trevor Richards.

That move helped the Blue Jays massively, as Richards (and Adam Cimber) helped stabilize the Jays’ bullpen. It also helped Tellez find his game, as his best full season came in 2022 with the Brewers. That season, the first baseman slashed .219/.306/461 with a career-best 35 home runs for a 110 wRC+ and a 1 fWAR.

Thanks to his power, Tellez has always been able to find a team, so expect him to sign at worst, a minor-league deal in the coming weeks.