The Blue Jays announced six minor league signings today: outfielder Corey Patterson, righty Winston Abreu, catcher Ryan Budde, lefty Sean Henn, lefty Mike Hinckley, and righty Brian Stokes. The deals for Abreu, Budde, Henn, Hinckley, and Stokes were reported on previously.
Patterson, 31, hit .269/.315/.406 in 340 plate appearances for the Orioles this year, playing mostly left field. He came up as a center fielder with the Cubs, who drafted him third overall in 1998. As Patterson can be a useful fourth outfielder, I thought he might be able to snag a big league contract. He is represented by Jim Bronner and Bob Gilhooley. The Jays' current outfield picture includes Travis Snider, Vernon Wells, and Rajai Davis, with Jose Bautista and Adam Lind seemingly more likely to occupy infield corners.
Abreu, 34 in April, spent the 2010 season with Tampa Bay's Triple-A affiliate. His signing was announced by Baseball America's Matt Eddy earlier this month, but the journeyman deserves elaboration here at MLBTR. In Triple-A Abreu posted a 2.28 ERA, 13.3 K/9, 3.4 BB/9, and 0.2 HR/9 in 55 1/3 innings. Abreu has done that type of thing at Triple-A before, but has yet to receive an extended big league trial.
A note about Henn: the Blue Jays originally claimed him off waivers from the Orioles in October of last year, marking GM Alex Anthopoulos' first move.
