A's Designate Andy Ibáñez For Assignment: Full Breakdown of the Roster Move
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Ahead of Sunday's finale against the Texas Rangers, the Athletics announced that they had reinstated DH Brent Rooker from the injured list. To make room for him, they designated veteran utility man Andy Ibáñez for assignment.
Ibáñez had been claimed off waivers by the A's during the offseason when he was DFA'd by the Los Angeles Dodgers after signing with them as a free agent. The thought was that Ibáñez would provide some experience in the infield mix—particularly at third base—and especially against left-handers.
Ibáñez last started a game for the A's on April 19 at second base, but his last start before then was 10 days earlier on April 9, even with the A's facing a lefty starter on both April 14 and yesterday, April 25. Both of those outings were against Mackenzie Gore, so that decision may have been more Gore-specific.
In April, he hadn't been getting much playing time, appearing in just eight games while going 0-for-10. That is part of the reason for the decision on Sunday; he just wasn't getting a ton of opportunities, and the limited chances he did receive didn't produce positive results. He ended up 2-for-17 with the A's, good for a .118/.167/.118 slash line.
The other reasons for the Ibáñez decision
The A's brought in Ibáñez at the beginning of February, just before camp began, as a bit of insurance. The club didn't know for certain how third base would shake out, with Max Muncy and Darell Hernaiz being the favorites to land the role, but nothing was guaranteed.
During the spring, both Muncy and Hernaiz performed well, and Muncy has taken over third base regularly to begin the season, leaving limited opportunities for Ibáñez to work his way into the lineup. They're already having a tough enough time working Hernaiz in on a somewhat regular basis, so Ibáñez had his work cut out for him.
Obviously, if his bat had been hot, there may have been more of an effort to work him into the lineup more often, but that just wasn't the case.
The other reason for this move and not just waiting out this cold start is that Zack Gelof has emerged as a piece of the roster that can be useful in numerous positions (like Ibáñez), but he can also hit against both righties and lefties, so his role is less specialized. He can also roam center field and rob dingers on occasion. Even with a career of versatility, Ibáñez hasn't played in center in the majors.
Of course, cutting Ibáñez loose leads to plenty of what-ifs. What if there are injuries to the roster and now their depth is depleted? The front office can really only operate in the now, and give themselves the best possible route for success, while hoping they have enough coverage in case of injury.
If an injury happens a little later in the season, perhaps that's what ends up opening the door for Leo De Vries to make his MLB debut.
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Jason has been covering the A’s at various sites for over a decade, and was the original host of the Locked on A’s podcast. Mason Miller once said he likes Jason's content.
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