Marlins Claim Asher Wojciechowski, Designate Tim Berry

The Marlins announced that they’ve claimed right-hander Asher Wojciechowski off waivers from the Astros and optioned him to Triple-A New Orleans. In order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster, left-hander Tim Berry has been designated for assignment.

The 27-year-old Wojciechowski was long one of the more highly regarded prospects in the minor league system of the Astros and, prior to Houston, the Blue Jays. The Astros picked him up in a 10-player trade that included J.A. Happ (going to Toronto) and Francisco Cordero (going to the Astros). The South Carolina native was the 41st overall selection in the 2010 draft and ranged from seventh to 28th on Baseball America’s Top 30 prospect rankings between the two organizations from 2011 to 2015. Wojciechowski saw 16 1/3 innings of action at the Major League level last season, his sole big league experience, and yielded 13 runs on 23 hits and seven walks with 16 strikeouts. He has a considerably better track record at the Triple-A level, where he owns a 4.39 ERA with 7.0 K/9 against 3.1 BB/9 in 350 2/3 innings, although he hasn’t truly excelled in Triple-A since 2013.

As for Berry, the former Orioles farmhand had been in his first season with the Marlins organization but struggled enormously between Class-A Advanced and Double-A, surrendering a combined 22 earned runs on 35 hits and nine walks with 17 strikeouts in 16 2/3 innings. Berry had a strong season in the Double-A rotation back in 2014 but endured similar struggles to those he’s experienced with the Marlins when repeating the Double-A level in 2015.