Federowicz, Ramsey signed to minor league contracts
LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. — The Astros signed veteran catcher Tim Federowicz to a minor league contract Monday, adding a player with major league experience to compete in spring training with Max Stassi.
Stassi is the frontrunner to be the Astros’ No. 2 catcher behind Brian McCann, but the team lost Stassi’s main source of competition when Juan Centeno was claimed off waivers last month by the Texas Rangers. Though he may still catch some, Evan Gattis is expected to get most of his at-bats from the designated hitter’s spot next season.
Federowicz, 30, has played for the Dodgers, Cubs and Giants.
“We’ve had our eye on him for a while,” Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow said. “The last few years, we’ve made a run at trying to get him on a minor league deal. I’m excited to have him. I think he’s going to be a really good option for us to have, especially on a minor league deal. “This guy’s got experience at the big leagues, and we like a lot about him.”
Federowicz, who bats and throws righthanded and is listed at 5-10 and 215 pounds, appeared in 13 games for the Giants last season and spent most of the year with their Class AAA Sacramento affiliate. He batted .300 with an .829 OPS in 314 Pacific Coast League plate appearances.
In addition to Federowicz, the Astros also signed righthander Matt Ramsey to a minor league deal. Like Federowicz, Ramsey received an invitation to major league spring training.
The 28-year-old reliever, who’s listed at 5-11 and 205 pounds, has never pitched in the majors and has bounced around among the Rays, Marlins and Brewers organizations. He had a 3.65 ERA with 58 strikeouts to 18 walks in 441⁄3 innings in Class AA last year but an 18.56 ERA in just 51⁄3 innings in Class AAA.
“He’s improved his arsenal in the last year or so, and we want to see what that looks like over the course of a season with us,” Luhnow said. “We think he’s a good fit for us, a guy to have to come to spring training, have our staff get to know him, and a guy that would be a possibility to come up at some point during the year.”
Odds and ends
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