The Dodgers sent infielder Ryan Fitzgerald outright to Triple-A Oklahoma City, according to the MLB.com transaction log. He cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week when they finalized their one-year deal with Andy Ibáñez. The Dodgers still need to make a 40-man roster move once they announce the Kyle Tucker contract.
Los Angeles will keep Fitzgerald around as non-roster depth. The lefty-hitting utilityman hadn’t cleared outright waivers before, nor does he have the three years of MLB service to elect free agency. This was probably the planned sequence for the Dodgers, who only claimed Fitzgerald from Minnesota a week earlier.
Fitzgerald debuted last season as a 31-year-old rookie. He played in 24 games, hitting .196 but popping four homers and stealing a base. The Creighton product had a nice year with Minnesota’s top affiliate, batting .277/.367/.469 across 245 plate appearances. Fitzgerald has a more modest .245/.333/.440 batting line over five Triple-A seasons divided between the Boston, Kansas City and Twins’ systems.
The Dodgers will presumably give Fitzgerald a look in big league camp as a non-roster invitee. He’s unlikely to win an Opening Day spot but will provide multi-positional depth in the upper minors. Fitzgerald can play anywhere on the dirt and has experience at all three outfield positions as well, though he has been a full-time infielder for the past two seasons.
Hopefully Fitzgerald finds Oklahoma to be like this side of paradise but what do I know? I am neither a flapper or a philosopher.
Mark
“I only know that I know nothing.”
-Socrates
The good news is he will be there at the right time to enjoy watching the Thunder go for a repeat in the NBA. They’re a fun team to watch and if they became a mini dynasty it wouldn’t bother me in the least bit compared to the way most sports dynasties get tiresome unless you’re a fan of that team.
I know this is a baseball forum but it doesn’t mean we can’t appreciate other things.
Other things? There are other things?
Somehow to me this is the worst of the Dodgers moves this offseason I wish he would have cleared waivers with the Twins so he could carve out a decent role for himself like last year.