Former Royals minor leaguer shifted to fifth organization in less than three years

It's easy to forget that Cody Poteet was ever a part of the Kansas City Royals organization. The pitcher's tenure was both brief and limited to the minors, and his impact on the club was ultimately inconsequential. Now, Poteet is on his way to his fifth organization in under three years, with USA Today's Bob Nightengale reporting that the Chicago Cubs have traded the 30-year-old to the Baltimore Orioles for cash considerations.

Former KC Royals minor leaguer Cody Poteet traded to Orioles

Poteet was selected by the Miami Marlins in the fourth round of the 2015 MLB Draft, and after working his way up through the minors, he made his major league debut on May 12, 2021. Unfortunately, Poteet's rookie season was short — he was placed on the IL with a sprained knee in late June, which ended up being a season-ending injury. He finished 2021 with 4.99 ERA and 1.34 WHIP in 30.2 innings of work (7 starts).

In 2022, Poteet's injury woes only got worse. After posting a 3.86 ERA across just 12 starts for the Marlins, Poteet underwent Tommy John surgery at the start of August, ending his season. At the end of the year, he was removed from the 40-man roster and outrighted to the minors, but instead elected to become a free agent.

On December 12, 2022, the Royals signed Poteet to a minor league contract for the 2023 season, but unfortunately, he spent the large majority of the year recovering from surgery. He only managed to make one appearance for the Triple-A Omaha Storm Chasers before the end of the season, pitching two scoreless innings on September 23. That single outing was all he ever contributed to the Royals organization — he was released at the end of the season.

Following his extremely brief stint with the Royals, Poteet signed a one-year, $750,000 contract with the New York Yankees for the 2024 season, but only made five starts for the major league team, largely due to injury. On December 17, he was traded to the Cubs in exchange for outfielder Cody Bellinger and $5 million, but after being optioned to Chicago's Triple-A team to start the season, Poteet was designated for assignment on March 27.

Now, the Cubs have traded Poteet to the Orioles in exchange for cash considerations, making Baltimore the pitcher's fifth organization in less than three years, and third since he was with the Royals just over a year ago.

If Poteet is able to stay healthy, perhaps he will finally get his breakout season in the majors. Regardless, his extremely brief stint in the Royals' organization is now but a distant memory.