Minor MLB Transactions: 7/31/17

Here’s a wrap-up of some recent minor league moves from around baseball, with the newest transactions at the top of the post.

• Right-hander Al Alburquerque cleared waivers and elected to become a free agent, the Kansas City Star’s Rustin Dodd tweets.  The Royals designated Alburquerque for assignment last week and requested release waivers on him two days ago; Alburquerque was previously DFA’ed earlier this season, though that time he accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A.  The righty signed a minors deal with Kansas City last winter and has a 3.60 ERA, 8.1 K/9 and 5.4 BB/9 over 10 innings out of the Royals bullpen.
• Infielder Nick Franklin cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate, the team announced on Twitter.  Franklin was designated for assignment two days ago, and it was his third DFA of 2017 — he was designated by the Rays in April and then claimed by the Brewers, then designated by the Brewers and traded to the Angels in late June.  After posting above-average production in a part-time role with Tampa Bay last season, Franklin has been unable to get things going this year, with a combined .179/.269/.283 slash line over 119 PA with the Angels and Brewers.
• The Diamondbacks released catcher Hank Conger, Baseball America’s Matt Eddy reports.  Conger signed a minor league deal with the Snakes last winter and has a .239/.316/.394 slash line over 206 PA at Triple-A Reno.
• Also from Eddy, the Rockies released outfielder Domonic Brown.  Colorado signed Brown to a minors contract in the offseason.  Once considered one of baseball’s top prospects when coming up in the Phillies system, Brown was an All-Star in what looked like a breakout season in 2013, though badly struggled in his next two seasons and hasn’t since returned to the big leagues.  Brown did hit a decent .304/.327/.449 over 171 PA at the Triple-A level this season, though in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.
• Earlier this week, the Marlins announced that first baseman Chris Parmelee had been signed to a minor league deal.  Best known for his stint as a part-timer with the Twins from 2011-14, Parmelee appeared in just eight MLB games last season (with the Yankees) and has yet to reach the Show this season after being released from a minors contract with the A’s in June.
• Catcher Eric Fryer elected to become a free agent last week, the Cardinals announced.  Fryer was designated for assignment on July 21 and had been outrighted to Triple-A before opting to hit the open market.  The light-hitting catcher has played in parts of seven seasons in the bigs, most recently serving as Yadier Molina’s backup in St. Louis.
• The Rangers released veteran southpaw Wesley Wright earlier this month.  Wright posted a 4.16 ERA in 307 innings over eight big league seasons from 2008-15, though he hasn’t been back to the majors since, plus he’s struggled at the Triple-A level in the Texas and Boston organizations over the last two seasons.
• Earlier this month, the Dodgers signed left-hander Tommy Layne to a minor league deal, SB Nation’s Chris Cotillo tweets.  Layne posted good numbers out of the Red Sox and Yankees bullpens in 2015-16, though his career-long struggles with control plagued him this year, as Layne posted a 7.62 ERA over 13 IP for New York, with eight walks against just nine strikeouts.