Yankees-Mariners trade: Who is James Paxton, Brian Cashman’s new starting pitcher?

New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman acquired left-hander James Paxton from the Seattle Mariners on Monday, November 19, 2018 (11/19/18). The 30-year-old Paxton won 11 games for the Mariners in 2018.

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said his top priority this offseason is upgrading the starting rotation.

That began in earnest on Monday when he acquired left-hander James Paxton from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for LHP Justus Sheffield, RHP Erik Swanson and OF Dom Thompson-Williams.

So who is Paxton? Glad you asked. Career stats below are from baseballreference.com.

• Age: 30 years old.
• Years of service: 6.
• Career stats: 41-26, 102 appearances (all starts), 3.42 ERA, 617 strikeouts in 582.1 innings pitched.
• 2018 stats: 11-6, 3.76 ERA in 28 starts (career high in starts).
• Best season: 2017, during which he went 12-5 (career high in wins) with 2.98 ERA (career low in ERA) in 24 starts.

Paxton is a Canadian native. His nickname is Big Maple. I mean, how Canadian can you get! He checks in at a healthy 6’4″ and 235 pounds. 

According to the Mariners’ web site, Paxton’s Canadian roots run deep:

James Alston Paxton…resides in Kirkland, WA with wife Katie…native of Ladner, British Columbia, a suburb of Vancouver 22 miles from border crossing in Blaine, WA…attended Delta Secondary School where he helped win BC’s Best Tournament Championship as junior and senior…went 7-1 with 1.70 ERA with 65 strikeouts as a senior…pitched for University of Kentucky from 2007-09…was 11-5 with 4.91 ERA (81 ER, 148.1 IP) and 168 strikeouts in 55 games (24 starts) for Wildcats…finished junior season (2009) ranked 17th in nation and 4th in SEC with 115 strikeouts…3rd in NCAA averaging 13.22 strikeouts per 9.0 innings…three-time member of SEC Academic Honor Roll…selected by Toronto in supplemental 1st round in 2009 June draft, but did not sign.

Instead of signing with the Blue Jays, Paxton chose to play ball for the University of Kentucky and was drafted by the Mariners in the fourth round in 2010.

Did not immediately sign after being selected in the 4th round of the 2010 June draft … made 4 starts for Grand Prairie in the independent American Association (1-2 4.08 ERA, 18 SO, 7 BB) prior to the 2010 draft.

Paxton made his MLB debut on Sept. 7, 2013.

The left-hander does come with some injury concerns, per NJ Advance Media’s Brendan Kuty:

Last season, Paxton missed five weeks — three with back inflammation and two after a line drive nailed his left forearm. He missed two months in 2017 (forearm strain, pectoral strain); two weeks in 2016 (line drive to the elbow); nearly four months in 2015 (left finger tendon strain); and four months in 2014 (lat strain).

According to Spotrac, Paxton is arbitration-eligible in 2019 and 2020, and eligible for free agency in 2021.

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Here’s more on Paxton, from Yankees PR:

Paxton, 30, went 11-6 with a 3.76 ERA (160.1IP, 134H, 67ER, 42BB, 208K, 23HR) in 28 starts with Seattle in 2018, setting career highs in innings pitched and collecting the first 200-strikeout season of his career. He had eight starts with at least 10 strikeouts, tied for sixth-most in the Majors.  Among American Leaguers with at least 150.0IP, his 3.27 FIP was ninth-lowest.

On May 8 at Toronto, Paxton threw the first no-hitter of his career (9.0IP, 3BB, 7K) and the sixth in Mariners history (five by individual pitchers and one combined no-hitter). A native of Ladner, British Columbia, Paxton joined the 1945 Philadelphia A’s Dick Fowler as the only two Canada-born pitchers to throw a no-hitter. The start immediately followed an outing in which he struck out a career-high 16 batters in 7.0IP on May 2 vs. Oakland.

Over parts of six Major League seasons with the Mariners (2013-18), Paxton has gone 41-26 with a 3.42 ERA (582.1IP, 523H, 244R/221ER, 168BB, 617K, 54HR) in 102 starts, posting a sub-4.00 ERA in each of those six seasons. Among American League pitchers with at least 500.0IP since the start of 2013, his 3.42 ERA ranks seventh, while his 3.11 FIP is fourth-lowest in the AL over the span.

In 2017, Paxton was named Mariners “Pitcher of the Year” by the Seattle chapter of the BBWAA after going 12-5 with a 2.98 ERA (136.0IP, 45ER) and 156K in 24 starts. He was named AL “Pitcher of the Month” in July after posting a 6-0 record with a 1.37 ERA (39.1IP, 25H, 6ER, 6BB, 46K) in six starts that month, while becoming the first Mariner in team history to win six games in a calendar month.

Paxton was selected by the Mariners in the fourth round of the 2010 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Kentucky. He will become the eighth Canada-born pitcher to appear in a game for the Yankees and first since LHP Jeff Francis and RHP Chris Leroux pitched for the club in 2014.

Mike Rosenstein may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @rosenstein73. Find NJ.com on Facebook.