Grudzielanek signs Minor League deal
Veteran second baseman, Mark Grudzielanek, has signed a Minor League deal with the Twins and will report to Fort Myers for some extended training before being assigned to a Minor League team.
Grudzielanek is a 14-year veteran who has spent time with the Montreal Expos, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, St. Louis Cardinals and most recently the Kansas City Royals. He batted .299 in 2008 before an ankle injury put him on the shelf and hasn’t played with a team since becoming a free agent at the end of last season.
Ron Gardenhire said that the signing does not mean he will take over at second base and said the deal was not done to push Alexi Casilla, who has been struggling throughout the season. He may, however, give the Twins another option in a position where they are at a league worst in production. Grudzielanek is a career .290 hitter and was awarded a Gold Glove in 2006.
Even with those career numbers, though, the bare fact is that Grudzielanek is 39 years old and hasn’t played a game since being injured nearly one year ago. His age alone gives Twins fans plenty of fodder to etch his name with the likes of Tony Batista, Bret Boone, Ruben Sierra and Phil Nevin; low-risk players picked up near the end of their careers for next to nothing instead of finding a suitable player such as Freddie Sanchez.
Signing Grudzielanek may have not been the best move the organization could have done, but it is a move, which shows that the front office is aware of their middle infield problem. It will take some time to find out if Grudzielanek will ever don a Twins uniform, but looking at his career numbers he is a better option than what is presently available.
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