The Reds introduced this afternoon they’ve introduced in catcher Austin Romine and reliever Alan Busenitz on minor league contracts. Each gamers might be in main league camp as non-roster invitees.
Romine, 34, returns to Cincinnati, the place he spent the stretch run in 2022. Acquired in a deadline day commerce with the Cardinals, the veteran performed out the yr in a depth position. He suited up 37 occasions for the Reds, hitting .147/.173/.263 throughout 99 journeys to the plate. Cincinnati was considered one of three groups for Romine in 2022, as he additionally spent transient time with the Angels and St. Louis.
Between the trio of groups, the righty-hitting backstop posted a .155/.187/.248 line by 136 plate appearances. That was his most sturdy MLB workload since 2019, although he’s now appeared within the majors in 11 of the previous 12 seasons total. A longtime backup with the Yankees, Romine has performed for 5 golf equipment since reaching free company upfront of the 2020 season. He’s a .230/.268/.348 hitter in over 1400 profession plate appearances.
Romine brings loads of expertise and a few familiarity with the pitching employees to Reds camp. Cincinnati has already signed Curt Casali and Luke Maile to MLB offers this winter, bringing in a pair of depth choices behind highly-regarded younger backstop Tyler Stephenson. Barring damage, it’s exhausting to examine Romine cracking the Opening Day roster. He’s more likely to begin the season at Triple-A Louisville and stay readily available if the group must name upon a veteran depth choice.
Busenitz, 32, got here out of the Twins bullpen 51 occasions between 2017-18. He labored to a 4.58 ERA by 57 innings. After the second marketing campaign, Minnesota granted him his launch to signal with the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japan’s Nippon Skilled Baseball.
The fitting-hander has spent the previous 4 seasons in Japan, the place he carved out a profession as a strong late-game choice. Busenitz pitched to a 2.83 ERA by 155 2/3 NPB innings. His 18.8% strikeout proportion was pretty modest, although his 8.6% stroll charge is manageable. The Kennesaw State product returns stateside on the heels of a 2022 marketing campaign that noticed him toss 31 2/3 frames of two.27 ERA ball with a 20% strikeout charge at Japan’s high stage.