Baltimore Orioles: Two More Minor League Signings

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Some people call it dumpster diving, others call it organizational depth.  Dave Trembley, above with Brett Wallace, would have liked a little more organizational depth when he was in Baltimore.

Dan Duquette and the Baltimore Orioles just continue to shop for more players. A few days ago, the team signed Luis Ayala, who the Orioles had traded to Atlanta for Chris Jones. Ayala struggled away from Baltimore, but now is back with a minor league deal.

Saturday, the team announced they had reached an agreement on a minor league deal with David Adams. Adams, who started 38 games last year for the New York Yankees, is a very polished fielder. He is not quite as strong with his bat, hitting .193 in 2013 with 27 hits and 13 RBIs.

Adams was for the Cleveland Indians this spring, appearing in 17 games and getting 9 hits in 32 at-bats for a .281 batting average. Adams, 27, is likely to be another utility infielder in the Orioles organization. And with some of their other utility options, such as Alexi Casilla and Alex Gonzalez either making the team or possibly opting out, the Orioles will need that depth.

But, that’s not all. The Orioles announced today (Sunday) the signing of Brett Wallace to a minor-league deal. Wallace, a corner infielder, was the first round pick by the St. Louis Cardinals in 2008.

Wallace has played 311 major league games in his career, all with the Houston Astros. He is a career .242 hitter, with 29 home runs. Wallace, also 27, is a guy who strikes out a lot, but some think he hasn’t quite figured it out yet. He does have several good hitting years in the minor leagues.

Dan Duquette, speaking of the signing to MASN Sports’ Roch Kubatko, said the following about Wallace, “If you look at his numbers in the minors, he’s hit over .300 there. It hasn’t translated as effectively to the big leagues, so maybe a little more time will help with that. He can hit. He hit 24 home runs last year between Triple-A and the big leagues.”

I like both signings. Neither are guys who are going to make the Opening Day roster, but you never know when injuries could become an issue. And let’s face it, the positional depth among the Orioles minor leagues is a weakness, so bringing in some capable players is not a bad thing.

The team has a lot of decisions in the next eight days to get the team from the current number of players in major league camp to 25 for Opening Day.