Konrad Schmidt walked in his first major league plate appearance as a pinch hitter in the ninth inning. His contract was purchased from Class AA Mobile earlier Monday, a day after Mobile was eliminated from the Southern League playoffs. Schmidt, 26, hit .315 with 11 home runs and 65 RBI in 107 games. He is the third catcher on the roster, joining Miguel Montero and John Hester.
Schmidt's .315 batting average, 490 slugging average, and .863
on-base-plus-slugging led the BayBears while his 30 doubles, 11 homers, and
65 RBI ranked second to BayBears MVP Collin Cowgill. Schmidt was
honored as the team's Offensive Player of
the Year on September 2, but he has been known as a defense-minded catcher
throughout his minor league career due to his ability to frame pitches and
throw out baserunners. He has thrown out 30% of would-be
basestealers over the past three seasons.
Right-hander Cesar Valdez was designated for assignment to make room for C Konrad Schmidt on the 40-man roster,
and must clear waivers to remain in the Diamondbacks system. Valdez went 1-2 with a 7.65 ERA in nine appearances (two starts) for Arizona this year
and 6-10 with a 5.90 ERA in 20 games (18 starts) for the Reno Aces. His
performance this year has been a disappointment, as Valdez has ranked as on of
the better pitching prospects in the organization the past few seasons and was a
candidate to win the fifth starter's job out of spring training.
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