Bliss was traded from the Diamondbacks to the Mariners on Monday along with Dominic Canzone and Josh Rojas in exchange for Paul Sewald, Nick Piecoro of The Arizona Republic reports.
Bliss used good fortune (.408 BABIP) and a very favorable home park to slash .358/.414/.594 with 12 home runs and 30 steals for Double-A Amarillo, but he has struggled in 13 games since getting promoted to Triple-A. Given that Bliss is already 23 and was a below league average hitter at Single-A (99 wRC+) and High-A (82 wRC+), his run at Double-A looks like a clear outlier, but he has a chance to be a good defensive second baseman or a passable defensive shortstop, so he should at least have a big-league career as a bench infielder.
The Diamondbacks promoted Bliss to Triple-A Reno on Thursday, Sam Dykstra of MiLB.com reports.
Bliss dominated in Double-A to begin 2023, slashing .358/.414/.594 with 12 homers and 47 RBI across 324 plate appearances while also stealing 30 bases. The 23-year-old infielder figures to close the season in Triple-A, but promotion to the majors in 2024 will certainly be on the table if he continues to shine.
Diamondbacks' Ryan Bliss: Earns org's monthly player award
Rotowire
Bliss earned the Diamondbacks' minor league Player of the Month award for April, Steve Gilbert of MLB.com reports.
Bliss hit .410 (1.050 OPS) with eight doubles, two triples, two home runs, 14 RBI and eight stolen bases over 18 games at Double-A Amarillo. The shortstop hasn't stopped hitting in May, collecting two homers and five RBI with a .919 OPS through five games. It's a huge turnaround for the organization's second-round pick in the 2021 draft, who hit .214 with a .641 OPS last year for High-A Hillsboro. Bliss opted to grind through the season instead of working on his swing at the team's training facility and performed better, hitting .262 (.818 OPS) over July and August.
