Yankees Bring Back Veteran Infielder

The New York Yankees have reunited with a veteran infielder after parting ways with him earlier this month.

According to MLB.com's transaction log, the Yankees signed Andrew Velazquez to a minor league contract on Thursday. He will report to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

New York released Velazquez from his prior minor league pact on August 3. He had spent the entire season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre up to that point, slashing .244/.315/.342 with four home runs, 32 RBIs and 23 stolen bases across 87 games, after signing in January and failing to crack the Opening Day roster while batting .214/.250/.333 over 44 trips to the plate during spring training.

The 31-year-old was chosen in the seventh round of the 2012 MLB Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He was later traded to the Tampa Bay Rays in November 2014 with outfielder Justin Williams for right-handed starting pitcher Jeremy Hellickson.

Velazquez came up and made his major league debut for Tampa Bay during the 2018 campaign. He played in a total of 23 contests through 2019 for the club before being dealt to the Cleveland Guardians in July of that year, who he appeared in five contests for.

The Baltimore Orioles claimed Velazquez off waivers after Cleveland designated him for assignment in February 2020. He went on to hit .159/.274/.206 in 40 games and 77 plate appearances for the club throughout the COVID-shortened season that year.

The Yankees later signed Velazquez to a minor league contract in December 2020. The Bronx native played in 28 games for his hometown team in the 2021 season and slashed .224/.235/.358 over 68 trips to the plate with a home run, six RBIs and four stolen bases.

Velazquez started the Wild Card Game at shortstop that year against the Boston Red Sox. He went 0-for-1 before Rougned Odor pinch-hit for him in the sixth inning of a 6-2 loss for the Yankees.