D-backs, Mariners swap Segura for Walker in 5-player trade

LHP Zac Curtis was one of five players involved in Wednesday's Diamondbacks-Mariners trade. He led the Midwest League with 33 saves in 2015. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz/The Midwest League Traveler)

LHP Zac Curtis was one of five players involved in Wednesday’s Diamondbacks-Mariners trade. He led the Midwest League with 33 saves in 2015. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz/The Midwest League Traveler)

The Diamondbacks and the Mariners made a major trade Wednesday night, as Arizona sent infielder Jean Segura, LHP Zac Curtis and outfielder Mitch Haniger to Seattle for RHP Taijuan Walker and infielder Ketel Marte.

All five players are Midwest League alumni.

Segura is coming off a career year during which he batted .319 with 20 HR, 64 RBI and 33 SB in 153 games with the Diamondbacks. He led the National League with 203 hits. The middle infielder played for the Cedar Rapids Kernels in 2010, batting .313 with 10 home runs, 12 triples, 24 doubles, 79 runs batted in, and 50 stolen bases in 130 games. (His Kernels teammate Mike Trout was the Midwest League MVP and Prospect of the Year for that season.)

Curtis made his major-league debut this year, and split the 2016 season between the Diamondbacks and their High-A and Double-A affiliates. The lefty reliever pitched for the Kane County Cougars just one year earlier, going 4-4 with a 1.33 ERA, 75 strikeouts and 12 walks in 54 innings (53 games). His 33 saves led the Midwest League and set a new single-season record for the Cougars.

Haniger also made his MLB debut this year, appearing in 34 games for the Diamondbacks. He batted only .229 with 5 HR and 17 RBI at the big-league level, but did much better in the 129 games he split between Double-A and Triple-A in 2016 (.321 BA, 25 HR, 94 RBI). The outfielder played 55 games with the 2012-13 Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, cumulatively batting .294 with 6 HR and 33 RBI.

Formerly a top Mariners prospect, Walker just finished his second full season in the major leagues. He went 8-11 with a 4.22 ERA, 119 strikeouts and 37 walks in 134.1 innings (25 starts). The hard-throwing righty pitched for the Clinton LumberKings in 2011, going 6-5 with a 2.89 ERA, 113 strikeouts and 39 walks in 96.2 innings (18 starts).

Marte batted .259 with 33 RBI in 119 games with the Mariners this year after making his MLB debut in 2015. The middle infielder played 102 games for the 2012-13 LumberKings, cumulatively batting .304 with 31 RBI and 17 SB.

Seattle Mariners RHP Taijuan Walker on the mound for the 2011 Clinton LumberKings. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz/The Midwest League Traveler)

RHP Taijuan Walker throws to first base during one of his starts for the 2011 Clinton LumberKings. (Photo by Craig Wieczorkiewicz/The Midwest League Traveler)

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This entry was posted in Cedar Rapids Kernels, Clinton LumberKings, Kane County Cougars, Midwest League, Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. Bookmark the permalink.

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