At the conclusion of a hectic day of roster moves across Major League Baseball, the Houston Astros found their outfield depth chart a little more shallow than it was to end the season.
On Thursday, teams had to return players from the 60-day injured list and trim their 40-man rosters down ahead of free agency. The Astros, who had perhaps the most rotten injury luck of any team in the league, had seven such players to fit into the picture.
That necessitated the exposure of some of the Astros’ players to waivers, like World Series champion outfielder Chas McCormick. But while McCormick cleared waivers and was outrighted to Triple-A Sugar Land, another outfielder did not pass through.
According to his transactions log, outfielder Pedro León was claimed off waivers by the Baltimore Orioles. The 27-year-old joins Baltimore’s 40-man roster, and will have two minor-league options remaining at the start of next season.
León has been both a power threat and a speedster for the Astros in the minors for the past few seasons. He’s hit 65 home runs over the last 3 1/2 seasons at Triple-A, though in fairness, the Pacific Coast League is known for offensive output. He’s also stolen 93 bases over that same time frame.
Houston’s outfield struggled this year in the wake of Kyle Tucker’s departure, but León, who played seven games for the Astros last year in his first major league cup of coffee, spent much of the year on the injured list with an MCL sprain and therefore didn’t factor into the discussion for playing time in Houston.
After a dismal last-place finish, the Orioles will look to find a spark in the 5-foot-9 León. Houston might have liked to keep him around, but a roster crunch sometimes forces tough decisions.
More MLB: Dodgers Cut Ties with Former All-Star Pitcher, World Series Champion