KC Royals: Braves Sign Omar Infante To Minor League Deal

KC Royals former second baseman Omar Infante signed a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves, according to MLB insider Jon Heyman:

The Kansas City Royals cut ties with Omar Infante earlier this month when they ate $14.7 million by designating him for assignment. Infante cleared waivers and became a free agent.

As I speculated upon Infante’s release, he had to settle for a minor league deal after being largely ineffective after signing a free-agent contract with the Kansas City Royals in 2014. The 34-year-old Infante’s .238/.269/.328 triple slash in 2 1/3 seasons with the KC Royals just didn’t cut it.

However, the Braves lack middle infield depth after dealing Kelly Johnson to the New York Mets earlier this month. They signed the .271/.308/.387 career hitter as emergency infield depth to stash at AAA.

The Braves front office is familiar with Omar Infante after he played in Atlanta for three seasons from 2008-10. infante made his only career All-Star appearance as a member of the Braves in 2010,  in the middle of a season in which he slashed .321/.359/.416.

Infante skills have seriously degraded since those days, but he remains a good clubhouse presence that plays solids defense. He just hasn’t been able to hit since slashing .318/.345/.450 with the Tigers in 2013, for a career-high .795 OPS.

The Kansas City Royals bought high by signing Omar Infante to a four-year, $30 million contract before the 2014 season, and got burned. Even so, Infante still thanked KC Royals fans after he cleared waviers by posting this message on his Instagram account:

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Good luck, Omar. You weren’t really a good player for the KC Royals, but I hope you can rediscover some of your lost ability and extend your career.