Infielder Zack Short has been sent outright to Triple-A Sugar Land, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment a few days ago. He has the right to elect free agency though the log doesn’t say he will do so. Infielder Luis Guillorme has been released by the Space Cowboys, according to his transactions tracker.
Short, 30, signed a minor league deal with the Astros in the offseason. He was selected to the big league roster in early July as the club was dealing with injuries to Jeremy Peña, Brendan Rodgers, Zach Dezenzo and Guillorme.
Short got into 22 games, taking up a lot of Peña’s shortstop playing time. He hit .220/.291/.380 in 56 plate appearances, hitting two home runs but also striking out at 32.1% clip. The Astros bolstered their infield at the deadline by acquiring old friend Carlos Correa as well as Ramón Urías. In addition to that, Peña was able to come off the IL the day after the deadline.
All of those developments nudged Short off the roster. Since he’s out of options, he got pushed onto the waiver wire and has passed through unclaimed. If he decides to accept the assignment, he’ll provide the Astros with some non-roster depth. He hasn’t hit much in his big league career but can play the three infield spots to the left of first base as well as a bit of outfield.
Guillorme’s release is a bit curious since he was just re-signed to a new minor league deal five days ago. Perhaps he received a big league offer with another club or maybe the Space Cowboys needed to open a roster spot for Short.
He has generally been a subpar hitter in his career but has received strong grades for his second base defense while also having the ability to play shortstop and third base. He should be able to find another landing spot shortly, if he hasn’t already.
Photo courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images