Charlie Furbush, a South Portland native who made his first major league start earlier this month, was traded to the Seattle Mariners today by the Detroit Tigers.

Furbush, who is 1-3 with a 3.62 ERA, has 26 strikeouts in 32 1/3 innings.

The Tigers get pitchers Doug Fister and David Pauley, who pitched for the Portland Sea Dogs in 2005 and 2006.

In addition to Furbush, Seattle also received outfielder Casper Wells and third-base prospect Francisco Martinez.

Fister has a 3.33 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in 21 starts this season for the Mariners and will be arbitration-eligible for the first time over the winter. Pauley is in the midst of a career season, posting a 2.15 ERA and 0.99 WHIP over 39 games.

Fister and Pauley were packing their belongings into boxes in the Mariners’ clubhouse ahead of Seattle’s game against Tampa Bay. Pauley was noticeably emotional about leaving Seattle but also realized the opportunity he was getting to pitch in a pennant race.

Fister is just 3-12 this season but it’s a misleading statistic as he’s received no run support all season from Seattle’s anemic offense. Fister has the lowest run support of any pitcher in the American League at just 1.97 runs per game and has lost his last seven decisions spanning 10 starts.

Furbush and Wells will join Seattle’s 25-man roster and be active for Sunday’s game against the Rays. Martinez will be assigned to Double-A Jackson.

 


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