Phillies add Neil Walker on a minor-league deal
The Philadelphia Phillies have been extremely busy over the last 48 hours.
The club has made their fourth signing in the span of two days, this one a minor-league deal for utility-man Neil Walker, as reported by MLB.com‘s Mark Feinsand:
Walker, 34, spent the first seven seasons of his career in Pittsburgh with the Pirates before bouncing between the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Milwaukee Brewers and Miami Marlins over the last four seasons. Last season, Walker hit .261/.344/.395 in 115 games with the Marlins. While he spent most of his time at first and third base, he spent much of the beginning of his career at second base and also played some outfield when with the Yankees.
As the roster currently stands, the Phillies have Jay Bruce, Roman Quinn, and Andrew Knapp locked into spots on the bench in 2020. Walker will be competing with former teammate Josh Harrison and Phil Gosselin for the infield utility role with the major league club.
Since yesterday afternoon, the Phillies have added relievers Drew Storen, Bud Norris, Francisco Liriano and now Walker on minor-league contracts. They have shown reluctance to exceeding the luxury tax before the season, and since they have very little room before reaching that number, making these kinds of low-risk moves is their best option to build depth heading into the 2020 season.
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