Infielder Matt Antonelli has been designated for assignment, so that the Baltimore Orioles can purchase the contract of outfieler Xavier Avery, who will likely make his Major League debut for the club. The O’s needed to find room to bring Avery up to the 40-man roster, and the name being thrown around the most was starting pitcher Dana Eveland.
Antonelli did not make a roster spot out of spring training, and the utility infielder has an interesting triple slash in AAA. He has hit just .204 with a usually meager .280 slugging percentage, but he has gotten on base at a great .351 clip. Still, Antonelli is a subpar player, and the move to designate him for assignment makes sense. He will likely clear waivers and stay with the O’s.
The 27-year-old signed a minor league deal with Baltimore in November, and the former top 20 pick by the San Diego Padres in 2006 was supposed to get a good amount of playing time at third base for the team.
Matt Antonelli spent just one season in the MLB, and that was while with the Padres in 2008. He had a 60 wRC+ in just 65 plate appearances with poor defense and was worth -0.4 WAR.
This morning, I wrote a piece on the move to call up Xavier Avery and wrote the following.
"If Avery is called up, he will likely play at left field and will be making his MLB debut. He has a .378 OBP at AAA with five home runs and eight steals so far this year. The top ten Orioles prospect has the upside to start in center field, but he seems more like a platoon back-up outfielder, because he has very little power and just cannot hit left-handed pitching. He has terrific speed and solid defense with a lot of raw athleticism, but he’s a poor hitter overall with below-average contact."
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