The Twins announced they’ve traded infielder Vidal Bruján to the Mets for cash. Minnesota designated him for assignment yesterday when they acquired a different utility player, Tristan Gray, in a trade with Boston. The Mets have not announced the move and will need to designate someone themselves to clear a spot on the 40-man roster.
Bruján is on the move for the second time this offseason. He finished the season with Atlanta but was designated for assignment a couple weeks ago. The Twins snagged him off waivers. They’ll pick up a bit of cash out of the sequence but not much more, as they apparently prefer Gray as a depth infielder. That could be as much about roster flexibility as anything else. Bruján is out of minor league options, while Gray can be sent to Triple-A without going on waivers.
The switch-hitting Bruján was a top prospect during his time in the Tampa Bay system. His bat has stalled at the upper levels, and he’s a .199/.267/.276 hitter over parts of five seasons in the big leagues. Bruján has decent plate discipline and contact skills but rarely hits the ball hard. He has five home runs in 645 career plate appearances.
Bruján has shortstop experience but is stretched there defensively. He’s better suited at second base or bouncing around the outfield. While he was a plus runner as a prospect, Statcast graded his sprint speed as slightly below-average last year. The Mets subtracted infield depth when they swapped Luisangel Acuña to the White Sox for Luis Robert Jr. this week. Bruján backfills that to an extent even if he’s hardly guaranteed to stick on the roster.
Eligible for arbitration for the first time in his career, Bruján agreed to a split deal with Atlanta in November. He’d make $850K if he’s in the big leagues and be paid at a $500K rate in the minors. He can’t be sent to the minors without getting through waivers. Players who have less than five years of MLB service time would need to forfeit their salary if they reject an outright assignment. Bruján is unlikely to walk away from that higher than average Triple-A salary, so the Mets will probably try to get him through waivers before Opening Day and hope he sticks around in a non-roster capacity.
The move that pushes the Mets over the top…
Gore Vidal trade day.
Imagine the odds you would have ever gotten to use that Gore Vidal line. If only there were a Buckley headline today too.
Ok. David is still employed. Back to normal.
Why they have 7 infielders?
Minor league depth. You need guys to play in AAA too. Plus, it’s a low risk-high reward move for former top prospect. Worth a flier
He has no options so there’s no guarantee he’d even pass through waivers and make it to the minors, which somehow he hasn’t managed to do yet.
He doesn’t need to pass through waivers if he stays on the 40-man. He can be stashed in the minors while on the 40. If they need a spot on the 40 then they just DFA him and hope he clears. If he doesn’t clear then they lose nothing by taking this chance on him. That’s why moves like this are so common, it doesn’t hurt at all, There’s pretty much zero reason not to do it. Might as well take a flier and try to slip him through to the minors.
Not how it works – guys on the 40-man who are out of options, like Brujan, have to be DFA’d and pass through waivers before they can be sent to the minors. It’s explained in the story.
My mistake, the article was updated after I wrote that. The same concept applies though…the hope is you can sneak him through waivers and stash him.
How does this guy keep ending up on major league rosters?
Probably because he’s good at baseball.
He will ride the merry go round through the offseason until one team is able to pass him through waivers
Cool guy who has cool style and is liked in the clubhouse
I’m baffled, Jeffy.
I’m drinking a wonderful Vidal Bruján right now!
I worry about these Mets, spending like drunken sailors. Do they realize that in the luxury tax bracket they’re in this fling could easily cost them over $400?
Cash Considerations on the move again.
A former Mets manager claimed it was just as good as money.
Looks to me like the Mets are going to be pretty good. I do find it interesting that Soto is not a great fielder. I wonder how much time he is putting in to fielding balls, when not in a game. 700 milliion plus, is a lot of money. Semien and Soto go good together. Seems like sterns has come through for the Mets. He pretty smart. Hey, the brewers are pretty smart. I practice remembering that entertainment is not to be taken seriously. I really do not care about a big group of greedy people.
He stated he was going to work on defense this winter
Fine depth. Seeing a lot of these type moves with fringe players who have a shot to pass through
Dont the Mets have like 17 players they already need to get on the roster????
Red Sox: We’ve had a very busy, busy offseason.
Mets: Hold my beer.
Richard “My Friends Can Call Me Dickie” Lovelady was DFA’ed to make room for Brujan.
I know I’m getting old when I thought it said Vidal Sassoon…
This will help the Twins pay off their debt!