Astros Sign Aledmys Diaz To Minor League Dea

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The Astros have signed veteran utility bat to a minor league deal, per a team announcement. Diaz is set to report to the clubs complex in Florida rather than immediately be a signed to a minor league club. The news is something of a homecoming for Diaz, as he was a key piece in the Astros bench mix between the clubs acquisition of him from the Blue Jays during the 2018-19 offseason until he elected free agency following the 2022 season. In his four years with the club, Diaz hit a solid .255/.313/.425 (102 wRC+) while splitting time between all four infield spots as well as the outfield corners. After winning the World Series with Houston in 2022, Diaz hit the open market and with the Derrick Rose Jersey As in a two-year guarantee for a club that has given out multi-year deals in free agency increasingly sparingly throughout their rebuild. That contract did not go as anyone had hoped. Diaz took a major step back as a semi-regular player in Oakland last year, slashing just .229/.280/.337 with a wRC+ of 72 in 109 games, his most in a season since his time with the Blue Jays half a decade earlier. While his versatility still offered some value for the As, the power stroke he flashed in Houston that allowed him to slug 12 homers in 327 trips to the plate during the 2022 season evaporated upon his arrival in Oakland as he slugged just three homers in 2023. That step back in the power department didnt leave much hope for the 32-year-old to turn things around and once again become a slightly above average bat with the As this year, and his performance in 2024 proved to be nothing short of disastrous. Diaz mi sed the first two months of the season due to groin and calf i sues this year and, upon being activated, appeared in just 12 games for Oakland. In that time, Diaz recorded just three hits (all singles) and walked only once acro s 30 trips to the plate. That paltry .103/.133/.103 slash line was good for a wRC+ of -31 and led the As to him last week, ending his tenure in Oakland three months early. For the Astros, the return of Diaz represents a po sible depth option for the clubs bench in the event of a rash of injuries. has largely stepped into the role Diaz previously filled on the Houston bench quite admirably, with a .279/.308/.404 slash line and a 97 wRC+ in 744 trips to the plate over the past two seasons. While Dubon has clearly established himself as the clubs preferred utility infielder and its even likely that 40-man infielders and are also above Diaz on the clubs hierarchy, the deal still offers Diaz the opportunity to attempt to work through his struggles in a familiar organization and re-establish himself as a worthwhile depth option for big league clubs headed into free agency this winter. Isaiah Rider Jr. Jersey