Right-handed pitcher Chase De Jong has cleared waivers and he has been sent outright to Triple-A Indianapolis. He was designated for assignment by the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday when they added Josh Palacios to the 40-man roster.
De Jong had a 10.61 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP in five appearances this year, throwing 9.1 innings. He missed brief time with a minor injury, which allowed him to make four appearances for Indianapolis, in which he threw four scoreless innings.
The 29-year-old De Jong struggled as a starter for the 2021 Pirates, posting a 5.57 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP in nine starts. He pitched well last year over 42 relief appearances, putting up a 2.64 ERA, a 1.14 WHIP and 59 strikeouts in 71.2 innings.
He has the right to refuse the assignment to Indianapolis and become a free agent.
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball.
When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.
At an estimated roughly $400k as a minor league salary while on outright assignment, I doubt he’d elect free agency, but you never know
Thanks for the info – so he is about 50% of signed value in the minors?
I have a tough time believing he’ll refuse the assignment. The Pirates are the only organization that has given him a real shot (for better or worse). He’s a league minimum guy, and the rest of the league passed on him already so the best he could do is be a depth option somewhere else. At least in Pittsburgh he’s got a fair chance of getting back to the majors again.
somebody needs to pitch in Indy in July after they start calling up more guys
The numbers of 2022 are special, but 71 IP in relief can take a toll. Every team needs an innings eater, and a benefit to have him at AAA, just a call away. He was signed by the Pirates in ’21 and ’22 on Minor League contracts, and I would think he is on a minor league contract for 2023, also.
Checked Cot’s, and he is listed in the Minor League Section.
Glad he’s still in the org. Seems very well liked.