Diamondbacks To Select Contract Of Gregor Blanco

The Diamondbacks will select the contract of veteran outfielder and longtime division rival Gregor Blanco prior to tonight’s game, reports Tommy Stokke of FanRag Sports (Twitter link). Arizona’s 40-man roster is full, so a corresponding move will need to be made. (Injured right-hander Shelby Miller has already been moved to the 60-day DL, so they’ll need to look elsewhere to free up a spot.)

The 33-year-old Blanco inked a minor league deal with the D-backs this offseason and may have had a shot at cracking the Opening Day roster were it not for an oblique issue that slowed him late in Spring Training. He’s been rehabbing that injury thus far in 2017 and has hit quite well in six games with the Diamondbacks’ Class-A Advanced and Triple-A affiliates (nine hits, four stolen bases and a 6-to-3 K/BB ratio through 26 plate appearances).

Blanco, of course, is a known commodity in the NL West after having spent the 2012-16 seasons wearing a Giants uniform. In 649 career games with San Francisco (2054 plate appearances), he’s posted .259/.338/.360 batting line while seeing time all over the outfield. A reserve role in Arizona seems likely for Blanco, as each of Yasmany Tomas, A.J. Pollock and David Peralta is healthy at the moment (with the exception of a recent bout with the flu for Peralta).