1:09pm: Mazara will make $1.5MM if he cracks the major league roster, per Andy Kostka of The Baltimore Banner.
11:40am: The Orioles have signed outfielder Nomar Mazara to a minor league contract, per a team announcement. Presumably, he’ll be in Major League camp this spring. Mazara is repped by CAA sports.
Once considered one of baseball’s 20 to 30 best prospects, the now-27-year-old Mazara has settled in as a journeyman corner outfielder who’s played for four different big league teams over the past four seasons. Debuting as a 21-year-old back in 2016, Mazara belted 20 homers and hit .266/.320/.419 as a rookie with the Rangers but never advanced his offensive profile much beyond that point. He swatted exactly 20 homers in each of his first three MLB seasons and 19 in his fourth, but regularly did so with sub-par walk rates, on-base percentages and defense in right field.
Traded to the White Sox prior to the truncated 2020 season, Mazara bottomed out with a .228/.295/.294 batting line in 149 plate appearances with the South Siders. A 2021 stint with the Tigers didn’t yield much better results. He fared a bit better with the Padres in 2022, although this year’s .264/.316/.352 batting line in 171 plate appearances wasn’t exactly a standout showing. In nearly 2700 MLB plate appearances, Mazara is a .256/.315/.414 hitter — including just a .235/.295/.324 slash since leaving Texas after the 2019 season.
The Orioles have been seeking left-handed bats who can potentially help them in the outfield corners, at first base or at designated hitter, and Mazara fits that description, even if he’s been a roughly average hitter in the big leagues at his best. He’ll have to earn a spot on the team this spring, and if he’s unable to do so, he could head to Triple-A Norfolk and serve as a depth option in the event of an injury.
Despite his love for rock and roll, Mazara picks the Orioles over the Guardians, who were a close runner-up.
lOVE THIS BIT!
I remember when I really wanted Mazara rather than Nick Williams in the Cole Hamels trade with Texas, but they would not give him up.
We were both wrong…
The Rangers gave up so many prospects in that trade and none of them panned out. Nick Williams had a Ken Griffey Jr. swing from the left side except he couldn’t hit the ball. At the time I hated that they gave him up.
The typical risk and reward of trading a star for prospects – yeah, they all pretty much plonked. I look at that trade and if I squint really hard I can see that it led to JT Realmuto, and then I am happy.
Wonder if he’ll benefit from the banned shift
I wonder if apples grow on trees?
could be a sneaky move. He definitely can pop out 20 hrs there with some at bats.
That’s what the Whitesox, Tigers, and Padres thought. He’s cooked
he’s still only 27.
And 3 years removed from any type of competencey in the box. Even his best seasons weren’t anything special.
And a pig is still a pig
Hitter friendly division compare to the other teams you mention. A lefty with pop can mash 30plus in Al East or even the nl central.
Especially with the right field at Camden Yards
O’s filling up on lefties FA. Pretty cool.
Spaghetti, meet wall. In reality, this is just a mess.
I dunno, seems like the beginning of things, not the final result. Time will tell, but minor league deal to a lefty pop bat isn’t bad.
I don’t mean that these guys aren’t worthy of minor league deals – there is no real risk here. But signing Nomar, Lewin Diaz, and Franchy Cordero… They’re throwing spaghetti against the wall to see what sticks. I don’t expect any of them to really work out.
I don’t expect them to work out either, well, all of them anyway, Some might, and Org has been addept at getting more outta/changing guys then they used too. If one works out, sweet.
Maybe it’s the metaphor thing: I see “casting a wide net”, not “wall pasta” (spaghetti on a wall usually means no plan, desperate act. This seems very in line w/ stated objectives of FO)
OK for minor league depth, not ok if this is looked to be the biggest signing of the winter.
We have plenty of OF depth though. LH especially. I don’t really understand the move. It’s a free roll but you’d think we’d be better off looking at some minor league pitcher deals if anything.
Looking back it makes you wonder what the Rangers knew and what the CWS and Tigers figured out…
The Rangers reportedly nixed a deal for Chris Sale because they didn’t want to give up Mazara. Obviously they didn’t know too much
What a waste of time to even sign the deal. This guy…at 27….is finished.
The Orioles can fix him
Now let’s sign a major leaguer or 2
“Ricky Vaughn? Willie Hayes? I’ve never heard of half these guys. Mitchell Friedman?”…