The Houston Astros have claimed one of the final three players the Twins waived on Tuesday as the team was finalizing its roster for opening day.
The Astros claimed outfielder Alex Presley from the Twins. He along with Chris Parmelee and Scott Diamond were placed on waivers by the team on Tuesday.
Both Parmelee and Diamond cleared waivers and have been assigned to Class Triple-A Rochester.
Presley, 28, hit .189 while appearing in 17 games for the Twins this spring. He hit .283 and drove in 11 runs after coming over from Pittsburgh in the late season trade for Justin Morneau. Prior to that, Presley had spent parts of four major league seasons with the Pirates.
Presley came into spring fighting to be the Twins starting center fielder, but Aaron Hicks emerged as the frontrunner for that spot. It seemed that Presley would still make the team as a fourth outfielder so the news on Thursday came as a surprise.
Rob Antony on Presley: "I thought he had a decent September. I still think he takes good at bats. I think he’s got some offensive ability."
— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) March 27, 2014
Antony on Presley:
"I was a little surprised his speed didn’t play better in the outfield and on the bases." #mntwins— Mike BerardinoNDI (@MikeBerardino) March 27, 2014
With Presley no longer in the Twins’ picture the backup options in center field are pretty thin.
Parmelee, 26, opened 2013 as the everyday right fielder but he lost playing time to Oswaldo Arcia. Parmelee hit just .195 in 41 at-bats this spring, according to the Star Tribune. He didn’t have much of a place with the emergence of Arcia, the return of Jason Kubel, and Joe Mauer moving from catcher to first base.
Diamond lost the competition to be the Twins fifth starter to Kyle Gibson.
The moves mean the Twins have likely finalized their 25 man roster as they get ready for opening day on March 31 in Chicago.
The Pioneer Press reports with those moves it appears the final roster spots go to utility man Jason Bartlett and Chris Colabello, the reigning International League Most Valuable Player.
Antony said Chris Colabello being right-handed in lefty-heavy lineup helped him, plus "He’s doing all the things we want Parmelee to do."
— Brian Murphy (@murphmedia_) March 27, 2014
