Todd Frazier was out, but the Pittsburgh Pirates pulled him back in.
Three days after opting out of his contract after being told he wouldn’t make the Opening Day roster, the 10-year veteran corner infielder signed a minor league contract to return to the Pirates.
Frazier batted .250 (7 for 28) with two doubles, three home runs and six RBIs in 12 Grapefruit League games. The two-time All-Star was edged out for a roster spot by Phillip Evans, who played first, second and third base and right field this spring.
Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said Tuesday the club was interested in bringing Frazier back, possibly for a spot on the five-man traveling taxi squad or to work out at the alternate training sites. Catcher Tony Wolters, beaten out for the backup job by Michael Perez, opted out of his minor-league contract and became a free agent.
“It was mostly the defensive versatility,” Cherington said. “Once we decided to go with 12 position players, or at least we thought that’s where we were going to be, that position-player spot, the defensive versatility became important.
“In addition, this is more about Phil Evans than it is Todd Frazier, but Phil’s done a lot of good things, back to last year, and obviously made a huge sacrifice last year in the way he got hurt trying to make a play. Has come into camp and had really good at-bats from our perspective. Played really good defense. So, no, nothing that Todd Frazier did not do. We really enjoyed having him in camp. He performed well.”
Not only did Frazier flash power — he tied Bryan Reynolds for the team lead in homers and had a .996 OPS — but the 35-year-old brought valuable postseason experience and leadership to a young club.
“He was a fun guy to have around, a light-hearted guy, brings a lot of energy and has a lot of experience, so it was cool playing with him and picking his brain,” Pirates shortstop Kevin Newman said. “I’m excited for him to be around and to continue to learn from a guy like that.”
