On Friday, the Seattle Mariners claimed first baseman Michael Toglia off waivers from the Cincinnati Reds. Toglia went to high school in Gig Harbor, Washington, so the Seattle Mariners give him a chance to come home for a fresh start. The Colorado Rockies drafted him in the first round of the 2019 MLB Draft after three seasons of college baseball at UCLA. In 290 career MLB games, Toglia hits .198/.275/.384 with 42 home runs across 1095 plate appearances. He has accumulated -3.4 fWAR in that period.
Despite his struggles at the major league level, Toglia still provides some intriguing power. In 2024, he hit 25 home runs with a slash line of .218/.311/.456. His expected weighted on base average was .361, which ranked 31st in all of baseball that season per Fangraphs (min. 100 plate appearances). Regardless, the lack of progress on those metrics in two hitter friendly environments provides some cause for concern.
Toglia no longer owns any minor league options, so the Seattle Mariners will have to designate him for assignment if he does not make the Opening Day roster. It is also possible that the Seattle Mariners will need his 40-man roster spot in the future pending future moves. For now, he provides some depth at first base entering the offseason.
Seattle Mariners Claim Michael Toglia Off Waivers
The Seattle Mariners lacked production at first base behind Josh Naylor this season. When Naylor missed time, Patrick Wisdom took at bats at first base, tallying one home run with a slash line of .106/.160/.191 and -0.6 fWAR. For perspective, Naylor himself compiled 0.6 fWAR the entire 2026 season in 152 games and 650 plate appearances. Wisdom only played 19 games and had 50 plate appearances.
Toglia was not much better in 2026 either though. In 10 games and 28 plate appearances, he hit .115/.179/.192 with an fWAR of -0.5. With this move, the Mariners are just hoping they can keep a local product around who has some previous success. He’s much younger than Wisdom, so the likelihood of a bounce back is marginally higher, hypothetically. The reality is that Toglia may only be on the 40-man roster for a short amount of time. This is typical roster shuffling during the MLB offseason. However, that does not mean that the Mariners do not see anything in Toglia. They obviously acquired him for a reason.
Toglia Hopes a Return Home Can Revive His MLB Career
Per their scouting tool, Fangraphs gave Toglia a 60/60 raw power grade and a 60/60 fielding tool grade. Despite his low hit (30/35) and speed (30/30) projections, he still showcases great power at the Major League level. In 2024, his hard hit and exit velocity rates ranked in the 94th and 91st percentiles per baseballsavant. The struggle with Toglia has been his whiff rate; he does not make contact often at all. Yet, his chase percentage that season was only 58%. If the Mariners can get him back to swinging at good pitches, the hard contact is still there for some productive at bats.
Seattle Mariners Claim Former Local Top Prospect Off Waivers