Seattle Mariners first baseman Ty France was surprised to learn on Monday that the Mariners had placed him on waivers.
The Mariners made the decision to put France on irrevocable outright waivers on Sunday. The 30-year-old has been struggling this season at the plate, batting .223 with eight home runs and 31 RBIs in 88 games. His on-base percentage is .312 and his slugging percentage is .350.
“I was a little caught off guard,” France said before the Mariners’ game against the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. “But I understand it’s a business at the end of the day. I haven’t been performing to my best, so anything could happen.”
France remains on the Mariners’ active roster for their game against the Angels. Although he wasn’t in the starting lineup, he could still play if needed.
Major League Baseball teams have 48 hours to claim France and add him to their roster, assuming the remainder of his one-year, $6.775 million contract. If he clears waivers, the Mariners could assign France to Triple-A Tacoma or keep him on the active roster.
As a player with over five years of MLB service time, France can decline a Triple-A assignment and become a free agent. In that case, the Mariners would continue to pay his salary, and any team that signs him would pay him the prorated major league minimum salary.
France had been a standout offensive player since joining the Mariners from San Diego in a midseason trade in 2020. He was an All-Star in 2022, batting .274 with 20 home runs and 83 RBIs. However, his performance has declined over the past two seasons, leaving his future uncertain.
“I think he’s handling it as well as he can,” Mariners manager Scott Servais commented. “Ty is a professional. He has played a lot of great baseball for us over the years, playing a key role in our lineup. But, you know, these things happen. It’s part of the business.”
