January 14, 2009 at 3:53 PM
Angel Chavez signed to minor league deal
According to Baseball America, the Red Sox have signed 27-year-old third baseman Angel Chavez to a minor league contract. Chavez spent all of last season with Triple-A Las Vegas (Dodgers), where he put together .292/.335/.423 numbers with 10 home runs and 68 RBI in 463 at bats. A veteran of nine minor league seasons, the Panamanian infielder owns a career .269/.310/.399 line with 74 home runs in 936 minor league games, split between the Giants, Orioles, Phillies, Yankees, and Dodgers organizations. He also saw limited time with the Giants big league team in 2005. Chavez can play all four infield positions - while he played mostly shortstop and second base early in his career, he's played more third base than any other position since 2006. While Chavez will receive an invitation to major league spring training, look for him to start at the hot corner for the PawSox in 2009.
In other news, the Sox have released righthanded pitchers Kyle Foster, Jimmy James, and Scott Lonergan, lefthanded pitchers Dan Buller and MikeTomoleoni, and catcher Matt Cooney.