Mariners acquire catcher Tuffy Gosewisch from Atlanta

It’s been two weeks since the Mariners made a move affecting their 40-man roster, so general manager Jerry Dipoto was overdue. And on Thursday, the Mariners bolstered their catching depth by acquiring veteran Tuffy Gosewisch, 33, in a waiver claim from Atlanta.

Gosewisch (pronounced GOHS-uh-wish) is a right-handed hitter who has a .199 average in 126 games while spending parts of the last four seasons in the big leagues with Arizona. The Braves obtained him in a Nov. 18 waiver claim.

The Mariners cleared space for Gosewisch on their 40-man roster by designating reliever Jonathan Aro for assignment. They now have seven days to trade, release or (if he clears waivers) send Aro to minors on an outright assignment.

Gosewisch has one option remaining, which effectively provides the Mariners with an optionable veteran who can serve as organizational depth at Triple-A Tacoma.

Mike Zunino and veteran off-season acquisition Carlos Ruiz project as the two catchers on the big-league roster. The Mariners also have Jesus Sucre, but his is out of options and would need to clear waivers to be sent back to the minors.

Aro, 26, was 3-2 with a 2.48 ERA last season at Tacoma but didn’t pitch after June 30 because of a strained forearm. The Mariners acquired Aro from Boston in an Dec. 7, 2015 trade.

This story was originally published January 26, 2017 at 2:13 PM with the headline "Mariners acquire catcher Tuffy Gosewisch from Atlanta."