James Loney signs to be a two-way player for an independent league team

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When last we heard from James Loney he was being released by the Atlanta Braves in May of 2017. That release came, like, five days after they signed him to maybe cover for the then-injured Freddie Freeman. He became expendable when the Braves brain trust decided that Matt Adams would be better at that. He probably was.

Before that it was a minor league stint with the Tigers. Loney’s last big league action came in 2016, when he hit .265/.307/.397 with nine home runs and 34 RBI in 366 plate appearances for the Mets. That probably will remain his last big league action, but he will soon be playing baseball once again:

Loney, like just about every former big leaguer who signs with the Skeeters, is from Houston, so the commute will probably be an easy one for him. Hopefully we’ll at least get some good video of him striking some guy out or maybe hitting one 430 feet. He was never quite the player people thought he’d be, but I liked watching him play for some reason, so good luck to him.

 

Orioles option LHP Bruce Zimmermann to minors

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SARASOTA, Fla. – The Baltimore Orioles have optioned left-handers Bruce Zimmermann and Nick Vespi and reassigned infielder Lewin Díaz, left-hander Darwinzon Hernandez and catcher Mark Kolozsvary to minor league camp.

The Orioles announced the moves Monday.

Baltimore’s spring training roster now has 46 players.

Zimmermann made 13 starts last season. He went 2-5 with a 5.99 ERA.

The competition for rotation spots with the Orioles has been a significant story during spring training, but after the team acquired Cole Irvin and Kyle Gibson in the offseason – and with top prospect Grayson Rodriguez in the mix as well – there were a lot of pitchers Zimmermann needed to beat out.