Buddy Kennedy's journeyman tour adds another stop

The Mariners made it official on Tuesday, cutting bait on Buddy Kennedy just about a month after picking him up. MLB Trade Rumors confirmed the DFA, a corner-of-the-transaction-log move that still says a lot about how thin the margin is for a bench infielder trying to stick on a contending roster.

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Mariners Designate Buddy Kennedy For Assignment t.co/xEEm1rsA0e

Kennedy landed in Seattle in late June, acquired from the Giants for cash considerations right as Rob Refsnyder went down on the injured list. It was a classic emergency-depth pickup, the kind of move nobody notices unless the guy actually hits. He didn't. Kennedy went 1-for-10 in his limited run with the Mariners, striking out in 4 of his 11 plate appearances, with his lone hit a double. Once Refsnyder was healthy and ready to be reinstated, the math did itself.

This is the life of a 27-year-old who's now cycled through six organizations without ever locking down a big league job. Kennedy was a 5th-round pick out of Millville, New Jersey by the Diamondbacks back in 2017, debuted with Arizona in 2022, and has since bounced through the Tigers, Phillies, Blue Jays, Dodgers, Giants and now Seattle's org. A.178/.271/.274 career hitter across parts of four seasons, he's the definition of veteran infield depth — useful in an emergency, expendable the second the emergency passes.

Because Kennedy is out of minor league options, this DFA isn't just a paperwork shuffle — it puts him on waivers, where any of the other 29 clubs can scoop him up for nothing. He's cleared waivers plenty of times before in his career, and given the cold stretch at the plate, he's got a real shot at clearing again and either sticking in Seattle's system or getting a fresh look somewhere else entirely.

For the Mariners, the move is less about Kennedy and more about roster math heading toward the deadline. Getting Refsnyder back healthy off the IL means Seattle can run a deeper, more trusted bench down the stretch, and a 1-for-10 rental infielder was never going to be the guy standing in the way of that.