Borbón takes over the position from Quintin Berry, who departed to take the third base coaching job with the Cubs in October. Like Berry, the 38-year-old Borbón was best known for his speed during his playing days. He stole 47 bases over 294 games in a big league career that spanned parts of five seasons. Most of that time came with the Rangers between 2009-11. Borbón made brief appearances with the Cubs and Orioles in later years.

After retiring as a player in 2019, Borbón jumped into coaching in the Yankees’ system. He had a brief managerial run with New York’s rookie ball affiliate before moving into a player development capacity with the Twins in 2022. Borbón spent three seasons with Minnesota and now gets his first job on an MLB coaching staff.

The rest of Pat Murphy’s second staff in Milwaukee is as follows: associate manager Rickie Weeks, lead hitting coach Al LeBoeuf, hitting coaches Eric Theisen and Connor Dawson, pitching coach Chris Hook, assistant pitching/strategy coach Jim Henderson, bullpen coach Charlie Greene, third base coach Jason Lane, field coordinator Néstor Corredor, assistant coach Daniel De Mondesert, and infield coach Matt Erickson.

Adam McCalvy of MLB.com notes that the “strategy coach” element of Henderson’s title is a new development. The former closer has been on staff as an assistant pitching coach for three seasons. He’ll take on a bit more responsibility in game planning after run prevention coordinator Walker McKiven left to become Will Venable’s bench coach with the White Sox.

It isn’t clear if Weeks will receive Murphy’s old title. Todd Rosiak of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel writes that the 41-year-old is taking on responsibilities that would traditionally fall to the bench coach, however.

Whatever the specific role, it’ll be the first MLB coaching gig for the longtime second baseman. The #2 overall pick of the 2003 draft, Weeks played in the big leagues for nearly a decade and a half. Eleven seasons came in Milwaukee, where he made an All-Star Game in 2011. Weeks hit .249/.347/.424 as a member of the Brew Crew. He later suited up with the Mariners, Diamondbacks and Rays before finishing his playing days in 2017.

Weeks returned to his original organization in February 2022 — this time as a player development assistant. He clearly impressed in that role, as he lands an MLB coaching job two seasons later. Weeks was floated as a candidate for the managerial job between Craig Counsell’s departure and the agreement to hire Murphy. It isn’t known if he received a formal interview for that position.

Promoting Weeks directly to manager would have been a bit of a surprise given his limited coaching experience (although the Guardians tabbed Stephen Vogt just one year removed from his retirement as a player). Working on Murphy’s staff could position Weeks well for managerial opportunities down the line. In the interim, he’ll be back in the dugout at American Family Field.

Counsell departing Milwaukee wasn’t totally unforeseen. He was on an expiring contract in 2023 and extension talks didn’t come to fruition. But with David Stearns moving on from the Brewers to become president of baseball operations for the Mets and then firing manager Buck Showalter, many assumed Counsell would follow him to Queens. But Counsell joining the division-rival Cubs was not foreseen or known to be on the table.

Brewers principal owner Mark Attanasio spoke on the matter yesterday, per Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and it seems he was surprised as well. “When he first told me, I said, ‘Are you messing with me?’” Attanasio added that “It is what it is” and that the club intends to continue putting their best foot forward without Counsell. “We have a really good thing. I give Craig credit for helping to build that, and for adding all these coaches, all of whom have stayed. So we’re going to look for a manager who can continue having a terrific clubhouse culture and that can help us keep winning and hopefully get over the hump in the playoffs.”

As for the Mets, despite the generally spendthrift behavior of Steve Cohen in recent years, they apparently never got close to the $40MM over five years that Counsell secured from the Cubs. Per Andy Martino of SNY, there was a sense that his interest in coming to the Mets wasn’t actually that high and he was merely using them to drive up the bidding. That would track with his reported interest in resetting the market for managerial salaries. Perhaps he wasn’t especially willing to do that in Queens since he grew up in the Midwest and Chicago is a better fit for him, or perhaps the Mets were content to hire a manager with lesser demands, but the end result is that the Mets landed first-time manager Carlos Mendoza instead.

As for the Brewers’ immediate concerns in relation to this, though it may sting that Counsell joined a division rival instead of the Mets, the focus now will be on filling the void. It seems they weren’t terribly proactive while Counsell was still available, with Attanasio stating that he and general manager Matt Arnold “thought it was going to muddy things if we started interviews with third parties” but that Arnold has “conducted a couple of internal interviews, for what that’s worth.” That suggests they are still in the early stages of their search, with still a wide list of potential candidates being considered, as mentioned above.

Murphy, 65 this month, has a small amount of managerial experience. He was in the Padres’ organization in June of 2015 when Bud Black was fired as manager. Murphy got the gig on an interim basis for the second half of that season but Andy Green took over for the 2016 campaign. Murphy then came to the Brewers to serve as bench coach under Counsell and has garnered plenty of interest from clubs with managerial openings since, but has stayed in Milwaukee.

Mattingly, 63 in April, has plenty of experience as a bench boss. He was at the helm for the Dodgers from 2011 to 2015 and then for the Marlins from 2016 to 2022, before joining the Blue Jays as bench coach for the 2023 season.

Espada, 48, has coaching experience with the Marlins and Yankees but has been the bench coach of the Astros since the start of the 2018 season. He has been connected to various managerial gigs in the past few years but is still with the Astros, who just saw Dusty Baker step out of the skipper’s chair. It’s been speculated that Espada could take over in Houston but nothing is official there.

McCullough, 44 next month, has been the first base coach of the Dodgers since the 2021 campaign. He recently interviewed for the managerial opening in Cleveland but that position has now been filled by Stephen Vogt.

Snitker, 35 next month, is the son of Atlanta manager Brian Snitker. He has been co-hitting coach for the Astros for the past five seasons alongside Álex Cintrón.

Weeks, 41, played in the majors from 2003 to 2017, most of that in Milwaukee. He was hired by the Brewers for a player development role going into the 2022 season.

Weeks, of course, was a longtime fan favorite with the Brewers, who selected him with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2003 draft. He somewhat remarkably made his big league debut later that same season, though he appeared in just seven games. Weeks didn’t return to the Majors in 2004, but by 2005 he’d emerged as Milwaukee’s primary second baseman.

From 2005-14, Weeks was the go-to option at second base for the Brew Crew, hitting a combined .249/.347/.425 with 148 home runs and 126 stolen bases along the way. He made the 2011 All-Star team, enjoyed three seasons of 20-plus home runs and also swiped 15 or more bags in five different seasons. Following his days in Milwaukee, Weeks had brief stints in Seattle, Arizona and Tampa Bay, but he hasn’t played at the MLB level since 2017. In all, Weeks batted .246/.344/.420 with 161 home runs and 132 steals through 5112 plate appearances spread across parts of 14 MLB seasons.

Five years after Weeks was the No. 2 overall pick in the draft, Alvarez found his name called in that exact same spot — albeit by the division-rival Pirates. Like Weeks, he was quick to the Majors, spending less than two years in the minors before debuting with the Bucs as a 23-year-old in 2010.

Known for his light-tower power, Alvarez looked to be one of the NL’s burgeoning young sluggers early in his career. Though strikeouts continually worked to suppress his batting average, Alvarez swatted 30 home runs in 2012 and followed that up with an NL-best 36 home runs in 2013 — his lone All-Star season. The vast majority of Alvarez’s playing career was spent in Pittsburgh, but he did spend parts of the 2016-18 seasons — his final three in the Majors — as a member of the Orioles. In parts of nine big league seasons, Alvarez hit .236/.310/.447 with 162 home runs.

Weeks, 34, hit .216/.321/.340 in 112 plate appearances with the Rays earlier this season, totaling 90 innings at first base in his lone action on defense. Weeks was brought in largely due to his track record of success against left-handed pitching, but he stumbled to a .176/.333/.275 through 63 plate appearances. Weeks had a solid campaign at the plate as recently as 2016 with the D-backs (.239/.327/.450) and has handled lefties well throughout his career, so he could latch on elsewhere as a minor league signee.

Romo, who had been designated for assignment by the Dodgers, was acquired by the Rays on Saturday in exchange for cash considerations or a player to be named later.

The 27-year-old Featherston was not on the Phillies’ 40-man roster, though it seems that the Rays may immediately be bringing him to the Majors, as Tampa Bay also moved Matt Duffy to the 60-day disabled list, thus opening a 40-man roster spot.

Once a Rule 5 pick by the Angels out of the Rockies organization, Featherston has spent parts of two seasons in the Majors. However, in that time, he’s struggled to an unsightly .156/.207/.233 slash in 197 plate appearances. The defensively gifted shortstop, however, was off to a considerably better start with Philadelphia’s Triple-A affiliate in Lehigh Valley this season, hitting .270/.370/.394 with three homers and eight doubles. He’s also a perfect 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts. Featherston has appeared at shortstop, second base and third base in the Majors, and he’s also seen action in left field and at first base in Triple-A this year.

Some more AL East-related notes…

• Though Rickie Weeks has gotten off to a dreadful start to his 2017 campaign with the Rays, the “clock isn’t ticking yet,” writes Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. It doesn’t appear that Weeks is on the brink of losing his roster spot, despite an ugly .163/.317/.286 batting line to open the season, though Topkin notes that he’ll need to turn things around sooner rather than later. Topkin also notes that the Rays face a decision when Matt Duffy returns from the disabled list late this month. Duffy is in line to be the starter, but the Rays will have to determine if Tim Beckham or Daniel Robertson is the better option to serve as a utility option.
• Both Aaron Sanchez and the Blue Jays were encouraged by a 33-pitch bullpen session yesterday, writes Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith. Sanchez felt comfortable enough to throw his curveball — the same pitch that has led to the blister issues and a subsequent removal of part of his fingernail — and is now slated to pitch in an extended Spring Training game on Tuesday. If that outing goes well, he’ll be an option to return to Toronto’s rotation this weekend against the Mariners, per Nicholson-Smith.
• Hanley Ramirez has yet to appear in a game at first base this season due to a shoulder issue, but he’s ready to take the field for the Red Sox’ upcoming interleague series in Milwaukee, writes Jason Mastrodonato of the Boston Herald. That should allow the Red Sox to deepen their lineup against left-handed pitching, he points out, with Chris Young sliding into the DH slot and Ramirez playing at first over the left-handed-hitting Mitch Moreland. While Moreland has more than held his own against southpaws in a small sample of work this season (.879 OPS in 24 plate appearances), he’s struggled against lefties throughout his career. And, as manager John Farrell points out to Mastrodonato, Moreland isn’t accustomed to playing first base on an everyday basis (due largely to his platoon issues), so the ability to keep him fresh by mixing Ramirez in at first base is important in multiple regards.

Here are updates on players who’ll be paid the bonus or have instead learned that they’ve made their respective teams …

• Righty Brandon Morrow will not make the Dodgers roster, but he will remain in the organization, as Ken Gurnick of MLB.com tweets. Morrow will take a minor-league assignment, and his $100K retention bonus, to open the season.
• Giants minor-league signee Aaron Hill is set to receive his $100K bonus, Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News tweets, though that doesn’t mean he isn’t going to take an active roster spot to open the year. Baggarly suggests the veteran still has an excellent chance of earning an Opening Day nod after his solid performance in camp.
• The Angels have informed righty Yusmeiro Petit that he’ll be added to the roster for Opening Day, as Pedro Moura of the Los Angeles Times was among those to tweet. He figures to work as a long reliever and swingman in Los Angeles. Petit struggled in the second half last year for the Nationals, ending the year with a 4.50 ERA over 62 innings.
• Righty Tom Wilhelmsen and lefty Jorge De La Rosa have both been added to the Diamondbacks’ 40-man roster, the team announced, though only the latter is an Article XX(B) player. They’ll both join the bullpen for the start of the season. Wilhelmsen posted better numbers in the second half of 2016, but still wasn’t quite his former self. Meanwhile, De La Rosa is set to transition to the bullpen after serving mostly as a starter over his 13-year MLB career.
• The Padres will add shortstop Erick Aybar to their roster, per Dennis Lin of the San Diego Union-Tribune (via Twitter). The expectation is that Aybar will be the team’s regular at short to open the season. Clearly, that could change either now or in the future if the organization is able to pick up a somewhat younger player deemed worthy of a shot at a significant MLB opportunity. The 33-year-old Aybar has struggled badly in the past two seasons, though he was a productive, everyday player for years before that.
• Utilityman Emilio Bonifacio and lefty Eric O’Flaherty have been informed they’ll be on the Braves’ Opening Day roster, Mark Bowman of MLB.com was among those to report (Twitter link). The 31-year-old Bonifacio has struggled badly in his limited big league time over the past two seasons, though he had been a regular contributor before that. Never much with the bat, Bonifacio has long earned his keep through defensive versatility and excellence on the bases. Meanwhile, O’Flaherty has struggled to rediscover his form from his first stint in Atlanta. But he’ll receive another shot after a strong showing this spring; over 10 2/3 innings, O’Flaherty racked up 14 strikeouts and allowed just two earned runs on eight hits and three walks.
• The Rays have informed both infielder Rickie Weeks and righty Tommy Hunter that they will be on the active roster to open the season, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times (via Twitter). Weeks is expected to function as a righty bench bat, perhaps spending some time at both first base and DH, while Hunter will take up a spot in the Tampa Bay bullpen. Both players enjoyed productive Grapefruit League stints, with Weeks posting a .999 OPS and Hunter allowing just one earned run (with nine strikeouts against three walks) in his eight innings. Both will require 40-man spots, once the moves are made official. Meanwhile, it’s not yet clear whether the team will commit to doing the same with just-acquired outfielder Peter Bourjos. Topkin tweets that he may instead be paid the roster bonus, though the team’s final decision isn’t yet known.

• Alex Cobb is drawing “potential interest” from the Cubs, Dodgers, and other teams as a trade target, The Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin writes.  The determining factor, as Topkin notes, is how Cobb performs in his first full season back after undergoing Tommy John surgery in May 2015.  The righty returned late last season to make five starts (and post an 8.59 ERA in 22 IP), and still drew some offseason trade buzz as teams likely were looking to buy low.  The Cubs and Dodgers, of course, both have past connections to Cobb and the Rays in the form of Joe Maddon and Andrew Friedman.  If Cobb returns to his 2012-14 form and Tampa is out of contention, he’ll be a prime trade chip at the deadline.
• Cobb is entering his last year before free agency, and he tells Topkin that he is being realistic about the possibility that he’ll be dealt since the Rays rarely retain top players hitting the open market.  “It’s just the way things unfold here.  If you were a betting man, [a trade] probably would be the way to go,” Cobb said.  The fact that 2017 could be his last year in a Rays uniform has been weighing on Cobb due to the “life-changing stuff” that has taken place over his 13 years with the franchise.  “Then you go into the clubhouse and you see all the faces, people that I’ve seen since I was 18, that really have been your family since then….You think about it, and it’s sad.  It’s sad that it’s a possibility I could no longer be around here,” Cobb said.
• Rickie Weeks’ minor league deal with the Rays will pay him $1.5MM if he makes the big league roster, Topkin reports in another item, with $600K more available to the veteran in incentives.  In that same piece, Topkin looks through some of the roster decisions facing the Rays during the spring, as the club’s choices are complicated by several out-of-options players.  Nick Franklin, for instance, could lose his utility job to Daniel Robertson, or Erasmo Ramirez could be dealt to a team in need of starting depth.
• Chase Whitley, who also underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2015, pitched four scoreless innings in Spring Training action on Saturday.  Manager Kevin Cash told reporters, including Roger Mooney of the Tampa Bay Times, that while Whitley is slated for a relief job, “we’re not ruling out him starting, either.  It depends on how the numbers and how the injuries pan out, but right now, we saw last year what he can do coming out of the bullpen.  There’s a lot of value to that.”  The pen (specifically a long relief role) is still Whitley’s best bet to make the roster, and a spot could open up should Brad Boxberger start the year on the DL.  Boxberger has been sidelined all spring with a bad back, but expects to pitch in a minor league game on Tuesday.

Here’s the latest from around the AL East…

• Jose Bautista was choosing “between five or six places” this offseason before ultimately deciding to return to the Blue Jays, the slugger told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi and other reporters.  There wasn’t too much buzz surrounding Bautista’s market this winter, as he was ultimately able to land only one guaranteed year on an $18.5MM salary, though another two years and $36.5MM could be available in option years.  While the list of suitors was “not as many as I was expecting,” Bautista said he is happy to be returning to his first choice team.
• Bautista also expressed some regrets about his public salary comments during last year’s Spring Training camp as well as comments made in private to Jays management.  “I think in retrospect – I believe I can speak for myself and not for them – but I feel like I definitely could have handled things differently and maybe things would have played out different….Not necessarily changing the things that I said, maybe voicing them in a different setting and in a different way that might not get misconstrued and misunderstood the way that they did,” Bautista said.  A lack of familiarity between the two sides contributed to the situation, he added.
• Rusney Castillo is something of a forgotten man in the Red Sox camp, as ESPN.com’s Scott Lauber writes that the outfielder has no clear path to MLB playing time or even the 40-man roster.  Castillo is still hopeful of making an impact, as he is retooling his swing and is enjoying more personal comfort now that his five-year-old son and other family members have been able to leave Cuba to join him in the United States.  Castillo signed a seven-year, $72.5MM deal with Boston in August 2014 but has just a .679 OPS over 337 big league plate appearances.
• The Rays essentially made “a coin-flip decision” to draft Delmon Young over Rickie Weeks with the first pick of the 2003 draft, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes.  Drafting Weeks would’ve obviously significantly changed not only the Rays’ franchise history, but likely a good chunk of baseball history over the last decade-plus, as Topkin chronicles the chain reaction of events that would’ve been altered had Young not gone first overall.  Weeks, after all these years, has finally ended up in a Tampa uniform after signing a minor league contract with the Rays earlier this month.

After an awful 2015 season with the Mariners, the now-34-year-old Weeks had a respectable season at the plate with the Diamondbacks in 2016, though his work flew largely under the radar. In 205 trips to the dish with Arizona, the longtime Brewers second baseman batted .239/.327/.450 with nine home runs. He was particularly effective against left-handed pitching, mashing southpaws at an exceptional .284/.368/.642 clip. Six of his nine home runs on the season came in the 76 plate appearances he received against southpaws.

For the Rays, it’s easy to envision Weeks making the roster in a number of scenarios. Tampa Bay has reportedly agreed to re-sign Logan Morrison to a one-year deal, and Weeks could conceivably platoon with him at first base if he’s able to demonstrate the ability to play there in Spring Training. It’s been two years since Weeks appeared at second base, and his glovework there declined rapidly late in his stint with Milwaukee, but he could also split time with lefty-swinging Brad Miller there. And, as Weeks has played corner outfield exclusively over the past two seasons with the Mariners and D-backs, he could certainly act as a right-handed-hitting complement to Colby Rasmus in the corner outfield as well.

Weeks no longer profiles as an above-average defender anywhere on the diamond, but his ability to perform against left-handed pitching should give him a chance to earn a bench role this spring.

[RELATED: Updated Diamondbacks Depth Chart]

Greinke sustained the injury during his start against the Phillies on Tuesday and had to exit after two innings as a result. Prior to that outing, Greinke had rebounded from initial struggles to record a 2.58 ERA over 11 starts dating back to April 30. All told, the $206MM offseason investment has pitched to a solid 3.62 ERA in 109 1/3 frames in his first year in Arizona and logged a 7.49 K/9, 1.73 BB/9 and 47.6 percent ground-ball rate. He’s one of several notable Diamondbacks currently on the DL, joining fellow starter Rubby De La Rosa and outfielders A.J. Pollock, David Peralta, Chris Owings and Socrates Brito. Those injuries have contributed to the Diamondbacks’ 37-46 start, and Greinke’s absence certainly won’t help matters for a club that’s 7.5 games out of an NL Wild Card spot and trying to claw its way back into contention prior to the Aug. 1 trade deadline.

Diamondbacks manager Chip Hale said Sunday that the team hopes to have Greinke back shortly after the All-Star break (Twitter link via Steve Gilbert of MLB.com), so it appears – at least for now – that he’ll avoid a long DL stint.

• The Brewers announced that the contracts of right-hander Blaine Boyer and left-hander Chris Capuano have been selected.  Both pitchers were told they had made the team earlier this week, and the moves are now official that Milwaukee has created some corresponding roster space.  Sean Nolin and Yhonathan Barrios were both moved to the 60-day DL, while Will Smith was placed on the 15-day DL.
• The Diamondbacks selected Rickie Weeks’ contract, the team announced.  Weeks, looking to rebound from a disastrous 2015 season, signed a minors contract with Arizona last month.  The D’Backs placed A.J. Pollock and Josh Collmenter on the 15-day DL in corresponding moves.
• The Twins selected the contract of Fernando Abad, the team announced.  The southpaw signed a minor league deal with Minnesota in December after the A’s non-tendered him.  Abad posted a 4.15 ERA last season, with some unfriendly advanced metrics and uncharacteristically poor results against left-handed hitters.
• The Phillies finalized their 25-man roster, announcing that they have selected the contracts of lefty James Russell, infielder Emmanuel Burriss and outfielder Cedric Hunter.  In corresponding moves, Cody Asche and Michael Mariot were put on the 15-day DL retroactive to March 25, and Matt Harrison, Aaron Altherr and Mario Hollands were each placed on the 60-day DL.
• Left-hander Cesar Ramos has accepted an assignment to the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate to begin the season, Rangers executive VP of communications John Blake tweeted.  Ramos signed a minor league deal with Texas in January after being somewhat surprisingly non-tendered by the Angels.
• Cardinals backup catcher Brayan Pena will begin the season on the DL and will require surgery to remove a body from his left knee, MLB.com’s Jenifer Langosch writes (Twitter links). That means the Cardinals will add minor-league signee Eric Fryer to their roster to serve as their backup catcher until Pena can return, which should take two to four weeks. The 30-year-old Fryer played most of last season with Triple-A Rochester in the Twins system, batting .293/.367/.360. He’s appeared in bits of five big-league seasons with the Pirates and Twins.
• Outfielder Jabari Blash, a Rule 5 pick from the Mariners, has made the Padres’ Opening Day roster, AJ Cassavell of MLB.com tweets. The 26-year-old Blash batted an impressive .271/.370/.576 and 32 homers in a 2015 season split between Double-A Jackson and Triple-A Tacoma, then followed that with a decent spring in which he hit .204 but with four homers and eight walks in 59 plate appearances. The Padres also announced that fellow outfielder Travis Jankowski has made the team.
• The Rays have selected the contract of lefty Dana Eveland and optioned righty Andrew Bellatti and outfielder Mikie Mahtook, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times writes (Twitter links). The moves also mean righty Danny Farquhar has made the team. The 32-year-old Eveland pitched only briefly in the Majors last season, but got good results for three different Triple-A teams, posting a 1.95 ERA, 7.3 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 in 55 1/3 innings.
• The Braves have announced their Opening Day roster. The Braves were already in MLBTR’s pages today as they designated Michael Bourn and Emilio Bonifacio for assignment and selected the contracts of Drew Stubbs and Alexi Ogando. In addition, they reassigned Jhoulys Chacin to Triple-A Gwinnett. The idea, via David O’Brien of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution (on Twitter), is that he’ll make one start there and then join the Braves when they need a fifth starter, which should be April 12. Notable names who made the team include righty Dan Winkler, a 2014 Rule 5 pick, along with rookie righties Jose Ramirez and John Gant.

Weeks hit just .167/.263/.250 in 95 plate appearances with the Mariners last season before being released in June.  He’ll provide the D’Backs with some minor league depth at both his natural second base position and possibly in left field, as he appeared in 19 games in left last season (the first time he’d played outfield in his 13-year pro career).

Weeks, 33, was selected by the Brewers with second overall pick of the 2003 draft and delivered some big seasons as Milwaukee’s regular second baseman before struggling to just a .228/.323/.389 slash line in 1457 PA over the last four seasons.  That total includes a strong .809 OPS in part-time action in 2014, boosted by terrific numbers against left-handed pitching.  With so many right-handed hitting infield and outfield options in Arizona’s camp already, however, it may be tough for Weeks to find a spot on the 25-man roster.

Weeks, 32, signed a one-year, $2MM contract with the Mariners in the offseason as the club was looking to use him as Robinson Cano’s backup as well as in a utility role around the diamond.  As it turned out, Weeks never played anywhere besides left field and DH over his 37 games with the team, and he contributed very little at the plate, hitting .167/.263/.250 with two homers in 95 plate appearances.

Once one of the game’s better-hitting second basemen in his prime with the Brewers, Weeks has hit only .228/.323/.389 over the last four seasons.  He did deliver an .809 OPS over 286 PA in a part-time role with Milwaukee in 2014, though that production was certainly aided by a .355 BABIP.  Always a dangerous hitter against left-handed pitching over his career, Weeks hit only .234/.308/.383 in 52 PA against southpaws this season, and contributed just a .290 OPS in 43 PA against righties.

The Mariners are responsible for the approximately $1.1MM remaining on Weeks’ deal, minus the pro-rated MLB minimum salary he might earn over the rest of the season if he signs with another team.  Weeks’ track record will probably earn him some looks from other clubs, not to mention the belief that his bat could pick up away from Safeco Field.  While neither sample size is large enough to be definitively, Weeks managed only a .278 OPS in 41 home plate appearances this season, as opposed to a .690 OPS in 54 PA.