Outfielder José Azocar elected free agency after being outrighted by the Braves, according to the MLB.com transaction log. Atlanta designated him for assignment on Monday when Stuart Fairchild returned from the injured list.
Azocar spent a few weeks as the last player off Brian Snitker’s bench. He only played twice, entering as a late-game substitute both times. It’s a similar role that the 29-year-old played for the Mets early in the season. Azocar is a plus runner who can handle all three outfield positions. It’s a light bat, though, and his playing time has dropped in each of the past four seasons. He’s also out of options, so teams cannot send him to Triple-A without running him through waivers — at which point he can refuse the assignment in favor of free agency.
Over parts of four seasons, Azocar is a career .244/.290/.319 hitter over 418 plate appearances. He’s hit a pair of homers while stealing 19 bases in 28 attempts. Most of his playing time came with the Padres between 2022-24. He landed with the Mets on a late-season waiver claim last year but has now cleared waivers on three occasions this season. He’s likely looking at minor league offers, where he owns a career .286/.322/.434 Triple-A batting line.
Padres reunion for LF?
He was liked in clubhouse but no, Bryce Johnson, Lockridge and T. Wade are all of the plus run, light hitting, 4th OFer types that team can handle.
That doesn’t even count Perlaza, Locastro and even Tirso in AAA.
DeVries the next out of position SS arriving soon…
Moving Tatis and Merrill has worked out more than fine. Haven one of mlb’s best RF and CF while having Kim at SS in 24 and an avg Bog at SS in 25 is acceptable based on the results. In the long run, having those 2 being elite at their position while filling SS in 26 someway (even if Bog or Iglesias) while waiting for DeVries is good.
HSK might even be available in 26! Bog will be 1b soon.