Former San Diego Padres infielder Adam Frazier was signed by the Los Angeles Angels, according to a report written by Charlie Wright of MLBTRadeRumors.com via Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com. The deal is a minor league agreement with a spring training invite.
Frazier is basically he definition of a journeyman, and his time with the Padres was brief. He’s been with five teams in his 10-year major league career, and he split last season between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Kansas City Royals. He struggled in Pittsburgh, but Frazier delivered what Wright referred to a near league-average offensive production while playing at four different spots in the field.
He started out as a reliable bat who could also play around the diamond. Frazier was drafted by the Pirates back in 2013 and made it to the majors three years later, and after that he cracked the regular lineup in 2017. He played both second base and in the outfield once he managed to get in the lineup, and he stayed there for the next four seasons.
The high-water mark of Frazier’s career happened in 2021, which he actually made the All-Star team by hitting .324 as a table-setter for the Pirates. That got the Padres attention, and he became the primary figure in one of A.J. Preller’s infamous deadline deals, as the Padres GM acquired Frazier for three players, Tucupita Marcano, Michell Miliano and Jack Suwinski.
But this was one Preller deal that didn’t work out. Frazier lasted for just half a season in San Diego, as the Padres moved him to the Seattle Mariners after that,. Frazier then signed with the Baltimore Orioles after a year with the Mariners, and he inked his deal with the Royals after his time with the Royals. He wound up back with the Pirates this offseason after Pittsburgh swapped him off Cam Devanney in a midseason deal with Kansas City.
Frazier is probably a player the Padres could have used, but this is the time of year when non-roster invitees are everywhere, to the point where many become redundant or interchangeable. Preller is counting on Sung Mun Song to provide the kind of versatility Frazier offers, although no one knows what Song’s offense is going to look like given his background in Korean league baseball. The Padres also have a more stable infield than the Angels with Manny Machado established at third, and the same status applies to shortstop Xander Bogaerts.