The Marlins announced they have signed infielder/outfielder Eric Wagaman to a one-year major league deal. Infielder Vidal Bruján has been designated for assignment as the corresponding move. Salary figures for Wagaman weren’t reported but it’s likely near the major league minimum since the Paragon Sports International client just made his major league debut this year. Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase reported on the signing prior to the official announcement.
Wagaman, 27, was drafted by the Yankees and spent his entire career with that club until about a year ago, when the Angels plucked him away in the minor league phase of the 2023 Rule 5 draft. After a strong season in the minors, the Angels called him up to the big leagues on September 10. He got into 18 games down the stretch as the club was playing out a losing season, stepping to the plate 74 times and hitting .250/.270/.403. He was non-tendered at the end of the year, sending him to free agency without being exposed to waivers.
That’s a very small sample size and the Marlins probably aren’t giving it much weight. He has 897 minor league plate appearances over the past three years, with some intriguing numbers in that larger sample. He hit 35 home runs, struck out just 16.9% of the time and drew walks at a 9.5% clip. He has a combined batting line of .276/.348/.473 over those three seasons, which translates to a 129 wRC+.
He also stole 26 bases in that stretch, getting caught seven times. Defensively, Wagaman was mostly a first baseman with the Yankees but the Angels fanned him out a bit, having him line up at first but also third base and the outfield corners this year.
The rebuilding Marlins have very little settled in their position player mix. At last year’s deadline, they traded away Jazz Chisholm Jr., Josh Bell and Bryan De La Cruz. This offseason, they’ve sent Jake Burger packing as well. None of the position players on the roster have even four years of major league service time. Jesús Sánchez is the only guy with more than three, while Nick Fortes and Derek Hill are the only guys with more than two.
In short, there’s very little written in stone. Sánchez will likely have a corner outfield job but is a candidate to be traded if the Marlins get an offer they like. Connor Norby, Jonah Bride, Griffin Conine, Deyvison De Los Santos, Kyle Stowers and others are candidates for jobs in the corners but they are all fairly inexperienced. Wagaman has a full slate of options, so he can provide minor league depth at various spots or battle for a big league job. He has just a few days of service time and can be cheaply retained into the future if he continues to hang onto his roster spot.
Bruján, 27 in February, was once a top 100 prospect but he hasn’t yet lived up to that hype. He was praised for his speed, athleticism, plate discipline and ability to play multiple positions. Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to do enough damage with the bat to make an impact. He has stepped to the plate 550 times over the past four seasons, with five home runs and a .189/.261/.270 batting line. He has swiped 14 bags but he’s also been caught 13 times.
DFA limbo normally lasts a week but recent years have seen that clock paused over the period from Christmas to New Year’s. On this date last year, Ryan Jensen was designated for assignment by the Marlins and he wasn’t claimed off waivers by the Twins until January 4, over two weeks later. That will give the Fish some time to see if any club is interested in taking a flier on Bruján.
For what it’s worth, the minor league results have continued to be good, even as he has floundered in the majors. He has just over a thousand Triple-A plate appearances over the past four years and has slashed .272/.357/.451 in those for a wRC+ of 113. He is out of options but he has less than three years of service time, meaning he can provide four years of club control if any team is willing to give him a roster spot. He has played every position except catcher, giving him plenty of ways to theoretically slot into a club’s plans.
He didn’t do bad for the Angels at the end of the year. Glad to see him get an MLB contract.
should have just taken Blaine Crim in the rule 5 draft
Angels taking over the headlines again.
This must be an official dumpster diving day!
Man, Dipoto is good! I take it all back, carry on. Ahahahaha!
Really wish the Angels DFA’d Campero or Suarez over Wagaman. The guy can really hit and clearly another MLB team saw the potential if he’s getting above a minor league deal. He had all his option years and is cheap. Another dumb move by the Halos front office.
Angels FO never makes any sense.
@cybertron. Campero isn’t on the mlb roster, and catching again probably the 3-4 catcher. I agree about saurez, but I doubt he lasts. Rengifo is the 3rd baseman with moore most likely being the second baseman. Unless they make another move.
He had an 86 wRC+ with the Angels last season and a 110 wRC+ in Salt Lake. He can’t “really hit”. He was barely above average in the minors.
Was cool watching the hometown guy live out his childhood dream here. he grew up an Angels fan and got to play for his team.
Considering he has options remaining and Rendon never plays, I was hoping he’d stick around.
Vidal Bruján……
Why do teams keep picking him up?
Have any posters here actually watched him play at the
major league level?
This was only his second team. Rays and then Rays-lite. I saw him at AAA Durham a fair amount, he makes Miles Mastrobuoni look like Tony Gwynn. Once he is out of options he will make the rounds as a break-glass AAA utility guy for a few years.
@ Samuel. Brujan has a good glove where ever you put him and looks like he should be able to do better. I’m sad to see him go, but he had a chance to stick and it didn’t work out.
Pirates should grab him because, hey another former top second base prospect to add to the mix.
This is the player profile Cherington loves the most. 2B, positional flexibility, decent numbers in the minors but terrible production in MLB.
They need more. Corner the market.
Nationals should feel confident in securing fourth place in the division
I hope that Sandy Alcantara comes back healthy so fish fans have something nice to root for
Dumping Rogers for Norby was a nice get, but this looks like it will be a bottom 10% offenses in the league
Apparently the Marlins wanted him out of their hair.
Ryan Jensen hasn’t played affiliated ball since 2006; how could he have been DFAed last year?
Once the Marlins had discarded Garcia, Anderson, Gordon, and traded away everyone who had any value, the Marlins just had a bunch of prospects and suspects to take the field in August and September. That bunch of no names went 32 – 47 .405 giving the Marlins their best offensive numbers for several years, including 2023.