Dodgers Reportedly Sign Pair of Veteran Role Players to Minor League Deals
It was a productive day on the signing front for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday, as they inked two MLB veterans to minor league contracts, according to Alex Freedman of the Oklahoma City Dodgers.
Outfielder Kole Calhoun, who you may remember from his eight-season tenure with the Los Angeles Angels from 2012 to 2019, was granted his release by the New York last week after he exercised an opt out clause in his contract.
He joins the Dodgers in his attempt to get back to the majors, and he's coming off a quality stint with the Yankees' Triple-A affiliate, hitting ..281/.391/.528 with four home runs and 18 RBI over 23 appearances.
The organization also signed Mike Montgomery, and it'll be a homecoming of sorts for the California native who went to high school about an hour away from Dodger Stadium.
Montgomery's last time in MLB came with the Kansas City Royals where he put up a 5.06 ERA in three appearances during the pandemic-shorted 2020 season.
His last appearance in professional baseball was with the New York Mets organization where he went 2-11 with a with a 6.63 ERA in 24 appearances, 19 of them being starts.
Of the two, Calhoun is probably the one to keep a closer eye on.
The 35-year old was a quality hitter with the Angels that had pop in his bat, most notably in 2019 when he had a career high of 33 home runs for the team.
He'd recently made a swing change with the Yankees organization, resulting in good numbers for their Triple-A affiliate, and his mutual release seemed to be one of there not being a spot on the Yankees MLB roster, rather than a performance concern.
Time will tell what happens with Calhoun and Montgomery, but the Dodgers' decision to take a flier on both doesn't have many downsides.
