The Arizona Diamondbacks' organization got a bit emptier on Friday.
It's the time of year when veterans who meet certain criteria can elect to head to minor league free agency rather than sticking in an organization.
For the Diamondbacks, a dozen players chose that route.
The whole list, via MLB Trade Rumors:
- Ildemaro Vargas
- James McCann
- Jalen Beeks
- Austin Pope
- John Curtiss
- Casey Kelly
- Kyle Nelson
- Connor Kaiser
- Matt Mervis
- Christian Pache
- Matt Foster
- Tristin English
Vargas is a versatile infielder who could see interest in free agency.
McCann remains a veteran catching presence who will certainly get a contract somewhere if he wants t continue his career.
Beeks had a high-level prospect pedigree and can still be useful somewhere as a lefty out of a bullpen.
Pache had a fantastic prospect pedigree but never hit enough in the majors. His name should get him another deal somewhere, though.
This isn't bad news or anything for the Diamondbacks. It's just how things go each offseason. Every other team has a lot of names like this hitting free agency, too, and that means there'll be plenty of players with a slight bit of intrigue for Arizona to look into signing, as well.
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