Results tagged ‘ Martin Maldonado ’
More moves
In addition to trading outfielder Chris Dickerson to the Yankees for righty Sergio Mitre, the Brewers made the following roster moves Friday morning:
– Optioned catcher Martin Maldonado to Triple-A Nashville, where he’ll probably share time with Mike Rivera.
– Optioned right-hander Wily Peralta to Double-A Huntsville.
– Returned right-hander Zack Segovia to Minor League camp.
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Amid flurry of moves, Brewers cut ties with Hoffman
The Brewers on Tuesday declined 2011 contract options for pitchers Trevor Hoffman and Doug Davis and catcher Gregg Zaun, adding all three veterans to the pool of Major League free agents.
All three moves were widely expected.
The highest profile of those players belongs to 43-year-old Hoffman, who notched his 600th career save amid a trying 2010 but was replaced as closer by rookie right-hander John Axford. Hoffman’s contract included a $7 million mutual option for 2011, and the price of his buyout increased from $500,000 to $750,000 when Hoffman finished his 35th game of the season on Sept. 26.
Davis’ deal included a $6.5 million mutual option with a $1 million buyout. His 2010 season was a bust because of health issues.
Zaun’s contract included a $2.25 million club option for next season, but he is still recovering from shoulder surgery and will get a $250,000 buyout instead. Zaun said in August that he intends to play in 2011, but considering the Brewers have Jonathan Lucroy and George Kottaras on the 40-man roster and Mike Rivera signed to a Minor League contract, it’s difficult to envision Zaun returning.
The team also made two additions on Tuesday, claiming 29-year-old right-handed pitcher Justin James off waivers from the Oakland A’s and selecting the contract of catcher Martin Maldonado from Triple-A Nashville. Both James and Maldonado took spots on the 40-man roster.
James was pitching in the Arizona Fall Leagues for the Phoenix Desert Dogs, who happened to square-off on Tuesday against a Surprise Rafters team that includes the Brewers’ own slew of prospects. James finished the 2010 season in the Majors with five appearances in relief for the A’s but spent most of the year in the Minors, compiling a 1.83 ERA at the Double-A and Triple-A levels.
Maldonado, 24, is a defensive-minded catcher who batted .239 at three stops in Milwaukee’s Minor League chain in 2010. He’s currently playing for Mayaguez in the Puerto Rican Winter League.
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Four more camp cuts
A former first-round Draft pick and the Brewers’ reigning Minor League pitcher of the year were among the latest round of camp cuts Monday.
Right-handers Mark Rogers and Amaury Rivas were optioned to Double-A Huntsville, and left-hander A.J. Murray and catcher Martin Maldonado were returned to Minor League camp. The moves left 48 players on the Brewers’ spring roster.
Rogers, Milwaukee’s first-round pick in 2004, and Rivas, who won top pitcher honors last season, each appeared twice in Cactus League games. For Rogers, it marked another step on a long road back from shoulder injuries that so far have derailed his professional career.
“He’s worked very hard,” Brewers manager Ken Macha said. “His delivery is such that he’s a little more on-line — a lot more online. When you start cutting loose on pitches like he did this year, he should feel very good.”
Rogers did not allow a run in a pair of two-inning appearances. It was his second Major League Spring Training camp, but he was unable to pitch last year because he was still recovering from a 2008 season lost entirely to shoulder surgery.
Last year at Class A Brevard County, Rogers had a 1.67 ERA in 22 starts and one relief appearance. He also pitched in the prospect-rich Arizona Fall League.
They key, he agreed, it simply staying healthy.
“I’m OK with that statement,” Rogers said. That’s been our goal, to get 100 percent healthy and compete at the highest level. I’ve done that. I’ve been able to prove to [Macha] and everybody else that I’m healthy, and now I have to go do it consistently. There’s more work I can do, but it is already getting more and more comfortable.”
Rogers, 24, was pleased that his parents, Craig and Staphanie, were in the stands for both of his Cactus League outings. They were in town from Maine.
Rivas is also 24 and was Rogers’ teammate last season at Brevard County, where he went 13-7 with a 2.98 ERA and was honored along with Minor League Player of the Year Logan Schafer. Macha was impressed with Rivas’ change-up, which the manager referred to as a, “plus, plus pitch.”
Murray and Maldonado were both in camp as nonroster invitees. Murray, who has big league experience with the Rangers, will likely end up at Triple-A Nashville.
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Brewers in Caribbean Series
MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez wrote a preview of the Caribbean Series, which kicks off today on Margarita Island off the coast of Venezuela. Four teams from four countries are represented — the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Venezuela.
Two Brewers are represented. Infielder Luis Cruz plays for Mexico and batted .314 during that country’s regular season. Catcher Martin Maldonado, a nonroster invitee to Milwaukee’s camp, is on the roster for Puerto Rico. He appeared in 25 games during the regular season for Mayaguez. Puerto Rico also features Minor League left-hander Efrain Nieves, who pitched for Milwaukee’s low Class A affiliate in Appleton, Wis. last summer.
New Brewers center fielder Carlos Gomez played for the Dominican entry to the tournament, but he is not on that nation’s roster for the Caribbean Series. The Brewers explained Gomez’s absence from Sunday’s “On Deck” event by saying he was suffering from the flu.
You can follow Caribbean Series news, stats and can even access MLB.com’s gameday feature from this page.
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First cuts
On the eve of the Cactus League opener, the Brewers reassigned four players to Minor League camp on Tuesday including former first-round Draft pick Mark Rogers.
Besides Rogers, pitcher Alex Periard, outfielder Jason Bourgeois and catcher Martin Maldonado packed their backs and moved to the Minor League complex at Maryvale Baseball Park, where a mini-camp is underway. Injuries were behind the move for Rogers (shoulder), Periard (shoulder) and Bourgeois (broken pinkie), while Maldonado was sent out because the team has seven other catchers in camp.
Bourgeois will be called back to big league camp when his pinkie heals, manager Ken Macha said.
Adam McCalvy
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