The Philadelphia Phillies signed veteran infielder Christian Arroyo to a minor league contract with an invitation to spring training on Thursday, according to Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors.
Arroyo, who turns 30 in May, is a veteran of 295 career games with the San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays, Cleveland Guardians and Boston Red Sox. Last year, Arroyo signed a minor league contract with the Milwaukee Brewers but played only 37 games in the minors as a result of injuries. Arroyo is a career .252/.299/.394 hitter with 24 home runs and 120 RBIs in the major leagues. His last big league action came from 2021-23 with the Boston Red Sox.
With Boston, Arroyo saw time at all four infield positions, right field, and even got into a lopsided game as a relief pitcher in 2021.
In 2023, Arroyo appeared in 66 games with Boston, garnering 206 plate appearances, and slashing .241/.268/.369.
The 2021 and 2022 seasons were far more productive for Arroyo, a former top prospect in the Giants’ organization. He slashed .277/.323/.426 — a 103 OPS+ (.749 OPS) — and added 12 home runs, 61 RBIs, and six stolen bases in 144 games.
Hoping to latch on with the Brewers as a non-roster invitee in spring training last year, Arroyo went just 4-for-22 in Cactus League games. He elected not to opt out of his deal, however, and was optioned to the Brewers’ minor league camp.
A nagging wrist injury continued to hinder Arroyo into the regular season, preventing him from establishing himself at Triple-A Nashville. He slashed .237/.305/.360 in 30 games with the Brewers’ top farm team when healthy.
Ostensibly ready to go again, Arroyo will try to break through the competition for a bench job with the Phillies. Their list of non-roster invitees also includes infielders Carson Taylor, Rodolfo Castro, Rafael Lantigua, Otto Kemp, and prospect Aidan Miller.
Arroyo was ranked as a Top-100 prospect prior to the 2016, 2017 and 2018 seasons by MLB Pipeline. The Giants gave up on him earlier than that, trading him to the Tampa Bay Rays in Dec. 2017 in the deal that sent Evan Longoria to San Francisco. Arroyo appeared in only 36 major league games over the next two seasons with the Rays.
