Rockies sign former first-rounder Connor Joe to minors deal

The Rockies are signing first baseman/corner outfielder Connor Joe to a minor league contract, according to Thomas Harding of MLB.com. He’ll receive an invitation to spring training.

The 28-year-old was selected out of the Dodgers organization in the 2018 Rule 5 draft and had a very brief run at the major league level with the Giants early in the following season. He would up being returned to the Dodgers relatively quickly, however, and spent the rest of the year in Triple-A. Despite a fantastic .300/.426/.503 line in 446 plate appearances (a strong performance even after adjusting for the hitter-friendly environment of the Pacific Coast League), he didn’t manage to crack Los Angeles’ MLB roster.

Unfortunately, Joe was forced to undergo surgery after being diagnosed with testicular cancer this past March. It’s welcome news to see he’ll be back in game action next spring, where he’ll battle for a job in a seemingly wide open Rockies’ first base mix.