By Chris Brown / STL Baseball Today | @cbrown_STLBBT | Dec. 2, 2015, 11:20 pm CT, updated 12/3
The Cardinals outfield situation became a little less crowded on Wednesday, as speedy outfielder Peter Bourjos was claimed off waivers by the Philadelphia Phillies after two years wearing the birds on the bat.
Acquired in November 2013 as part of the four-player deal that sent David Freese to the Angels, Bourjos was intially projected to serve as the Cardinals’ starting center fielder. The glove-first outfielder never seized the role, and ended up hitting .218/.292/.342 with 14 stolen bases in 519 plate appearances over the last two seasons while serving mostly as a late-game defensive replacement.
With a 2016 outfield depth chart that includes Matt Holliday, Randal Grichuk, Stephen Piscotty, Jon Jay, Brandon Moss, and Tommy Pham, and the reports that the team is still interested in bringing back Jason Heyward, the redbirds were content in letting Bourjos, who was a candidate to be non-tendered, go on waivers.
The 28-year-old told MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki on Wednesday that he didn’t anticipate playing for the Cardinals in 2016.
“I was kind of expecting it,” Bourjos said. “I didn’t feel like I would be back in St. Louis just because of the amount of outfielders that are there. And I didn’t really play a whole lot the second half of the year, so there really wasn’t too much of a fit. So I felt like something was going to happen. Either I was going to be traded or non-tendered or claimed off waivers.”
Bourjos and the Phillies agreed to terms on a one-year, $2 million contract just after the trade, avoiding arbitration. While it’s unclear how much playing time he’ll receive in Philadelphia, he’ll certainly get a greater opportunity than he would with the redbirds.
The move came just hours after the Cardinals traded catcher Tony Cruz, another non-tender candidate, to the Kansas City Royals in exchange for minor league infielder Jose Martinez. The team elected to tender contracts to four players — Matt Adams, Brandon Moss, Seth Maness, and Trevor Rosenthal — but not Steve Cishek or Cody Stanley, who both became free agents.
More from STL Baseball Today:
Cardinals trade catcher Tony Cruz to Royals for minor league infielder
Cardinals keep Moss, non-tender Cishek and Stanley
Cards sign veteran catcher Pena to back up Molina
Cards reportedly finish second in bidding for Price, who agrees to historic deal with Boston
