Athletics Claim Alex Hassan From Orioles
The teams involved have announced that the Athletics have claimed outfielder Alex Hassan from the Orioles. The Orioles had designated Hassan for assignment earlier this week. To clear space on their 40-man roster, the Athletics have placed pitcher A.J. Griffin on the 60-day disabled list.
The Athletics’ latest waiver claim continues what must be a disorienting offseason for Hassan. The Athletics initially claimed him from the Red Sox in November, but lost him three days later when the Orioles claimed him. Now the Athletics have him back. The 26-year-old Hassan isn’t a power hitter, but he’s posted good on-base percentages in the minors. He hit .287/.378/.426 in 474 plate appearances while playing both corner outfield positions and first base for Triple-A Pawtucket in 2014, also going 1-for-8 in his first cup of coffee in the big leagues.
Orioles Designate Alex Hassan For Assignment
The Orioles announced that they have designated outfielder Alex Hassan for assignment in order to clear space on the 40-man roster for infielder Everth Cabrera, whose one-year deal is now official.
Hassan, who turns 27 in April, has already bounced from the Red Sox to the A’s to the Orioles this winter and may yet find himself with a fourth organization if he doesn’t make it through outright waivers (which he’s already failed to do twice, albeit much earlier in the offseason).
The former 20th-round pick made his big league debut in 2014 with the Sox, collecting a hit and a walk in nine plate appearances. In a much larger sample of work with Triple-A Pawtucket in 2014, Hassan hit a solid .287/.378/.426 with eight homers and 31 doubles. That triple-slash line is fairly representative of what one can expect from Hassan based on his entire body of work as a minor leaguer; he’s a career .287/.393/.430 hitter who has only posted a double-digit home run total once (13 at Double-A in 2011) but has never recorded a single-season OBP lower than .375. Hassan has walked in 13.7 percent of his career plate appearances in the minors as opposed to an 18.1 percent strikeout rate.
From a defensive standpoint, Hassan is limited to the outfield corners, though he’s appeared in 28 games at first base over the past two seasons. In that time, the right-handed hitter has batted .328/.424/.525 with six homers in 236 plate appearances against lefties.
Orioles Claim Alex Hassan
The Orioles have claimed outfielder Alex Hassan off waivers from the Athletics, Baltimore announced.
After missing out on a chance to add the 26-year-old a few days ago, when he was claimed by the A’s from the Red Sox, the Orioles apparently jumped when he was again exposed to waivers. Hassan has a lengthy track record at Triple-A, where he has established himself as a reliable on-base threat. His career line over 1,082 plate appearances at the highest level of the minors is .282/.387/.411.