Padres' Kevin Plawecki: Signed by SD to minor-league deal
Rotowire
Plawecki signed a minor-league contract with the Padres on Saturday, Jeff Sanders of The San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Plawecki opted out of his minor-league contract with the Nationals on Tuesday, and it didn't take the veteran backstop long to find a new club. Plawecki will need to be added to the 40-man roster to help the Padres in 2023, but a strong showing in the Pacific Coast League could lead to him earning reps with San Diego before the campaign comes to a conclusion.
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Kevin Plawecki: Opts out of Nats contract
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Plawecki was released by the Nationals on Tuesday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
Plawecki exercised the opt-out clause in the minor-league contract he signed with Washington in early April. The 32-year-old journeyman catcher was batting .256/.351/.342 with one home run and six RBI through 24 games (94 plate appearances) at Triple-A Rochester.
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Nationals' Kevin Plawecki: Signs minor-league deal with Nats
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Plawecki agreed to a minor-league contract with the Rangers on Saturday, Andrew Golden of The Washington Post reports.
Plawecki has been a competent backup throughout his career, seeing big-league time in eight consecutive seasons but never receiving more than 277 plate appearances. He'll head to the minors for now and may need an injury to Keibert Ruiz or Riley Adams to earn a call-up.
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Kevin Plawecki: Released by Pirates
Rotowire
Plawecki was released by the Pirates on Thursday, Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
The Pirates haven't made an official announcement, but Plawecki's locker was cleaned out after he was informed he wouldn't make the club. The backup catcher job behind Austin Hedges will now go to either Jason Delay or Tyler Heineman.
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Pirates' Kevin Plawecki: Latches on with Bucs
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Plawecki signed a minor-league contract with the Pirates on Sunday that includes an invitation to big-league spring training, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
Though he won't be heading into spring training as a member of the Pirates' 40-man roster, Plawecki may be in the best position to make the Opening Day squad as the No. 2 backstop behind Austin Hedges. Beyond Hedges, prospect Endy Rodriguez is the only other catcher on the 40-man roster, but the 22-year-old doesn't have any prior big-league experience and has three minor-league options remaining, making him a strong candidate to head to Triple-A Indianapolis to begin the year. Plawecki, meanwhile, owns a .235/.313/.341 slash line (80 wRC+) over parts of eight seasons in the majors, though he's coming off a rough 2022 campaign in which he spent time with both the Red Sox and Rangers organizations.
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Rangers' Kevin Plawecki: Makes first start with new team
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Plawecki started at catcher and went 1-for-3 with an RBI in Friday's 6-3 loss to the Guardians.
Plawecki, who was signed by the Rangers this week after being DFA'd by Boston, delivered a two-out RBI in his first at-bat with the team. He joins a three-man catching crew, along with Jonah Heim and Sam Huff, that should finish out the season.
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Rangers' Kevin Plawecki: Inks deal with Texas
Rotowire
Plawecki signed a major-league contract with the Rangers on Wednesday.
The 31-year-old was released by the Red Sox earlier this week, and it didn't take long for him to latch on with a new team. Jonah Heim has worked as Texas' primary catcher with Mitch Garver (forearm) out for the year, and Plawecki will now enter the mix as a veteran option.
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Kevin Plawecki: Rangers interested
Rotowire
Sources indicate the Rangers are interested in signing Plawecki, who was designated for assignment by the Red Sox last Friday, Robert Murray of FanSided reports.
Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News confirmed the team's interest, adding that Plawecki might be a candidate for a backup role in 2023. Plawecki is considered a popular clubhouse guy and teammate, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com, and his DFA prompted consternation among members of the Red Sox.
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Kevin Plawecki: Released by Red Sox
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Plawecki was released by Boston on Monday, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.
After being designated for assignment by Boston on Friday, the 31-year-old backstop will have to search for a new organization. His .574 OPS in 2022 is his lowest mark since 2016 and is part of the reason why he ended up falling behind Connor Wong and Reese McGuire on the depth chart.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: DFA'd by Boston
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Plawecki was designated for assignment after Friday's 2-1 win over the Royals, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
Plawecki started Friday and went 0-for-2 before being lifted for a pinch hitter, and he's now been removed from the big-league roster. The 31-year-old appeared primed to serve as the Red Sox's primary catcher after Christian Vazquez was traded to the Astros, but he's been surpassed on the depth chart by Connor Wong and Reese McGuire. Plawecki has appeared in 60 games this year and has a .219/.291/.290 slash line with one home run and 12 RBI.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Sitting in second straight
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Plawecki is out of the lineup for Monday's game against the Twins, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.
Plawecki is on the bench for the second game in a row, as Reese McGuire will handle catching duties in the series opener in Minnesota after going 1-for-3 with a walk and a double in Sunday's 12-4 loss to the Rays. The two backstops will likely continue to share work behind the plate until one clearly separates himself from the other from a performance standpoint.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Takes seat Sunday
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Plawecki is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Rays, Chris Cotillo of The Springfield Republican reports.
Plawecki will get a breather for the day game after he went 3-for-7 with a double and two RBI while catching each of the past two days. Reese McGuire will step in behind the plate for the series finale.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: On bench again Thursday
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Plawecki is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Blue Jays, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.
After making three consecutive starts behind the plate, Plawecki now finds himself on the bench for the second straight contest. The Red Sox's catching situation remains a difficult one to predict from game-to-game, as Plawecki and Reese McGuire appear to be stuck in a true timeshare.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Gets rest day
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Plawecki is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Blue Jays, Bill Koch of The Providence Journal reports.
Plawecki appears to have reclaimed Boston's No. 1 catching job after starting each of the past three games while going 5-for-9 at the plate, but he'll get a breather Wednesday. Reese McGuire will catch for starting pitcher Brayan Bello while Plawecki rests.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Nabs third straight start
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Plawecki will start at catcher and bat ninth in Tuesday's game against the Blue Jays, Christopher Smith of The Springfield Republican reports.
Plawecki appeared to have fallen into the No. 2 role at catcher by the middle of last week, but he'll now pick up his third consecutive start behind the dish while Reese McGuire remains on the bench. Manager Alex Cora appears to be rewarding Plawecki with more playing time after he concluded the weekend series with the Orioles by going 3-for-6 with a run over the final two games.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Losing work to McGuire
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Plawecki is out of the lineup for Thursday's game in Pittsburgh.
Plawecki will sit for the third game in a row, and for the time being, he looks to be Boston's clear No. 2 catcher behind Reese McGuire. The deadline deal that sent Christian Vazquez to Houston was expected to open up more opportunities for Plawecki, but McGuire -- who was acquired from the White Sox on Aug. 2 -- has performed better than expected with the bat and has at least temporarily earned the No. 1 role.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Remains out of lineup
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Plawecki isn't starting Wednesday against the Pirates, Bill Koch of The Providence Journal reports.
Plawecki has gone just 1-for-15 with a double and two strikeouts over his last five matchups and will retreat to the bench for the third time in the last four games. Reese McGuire is starting behind the dish and batting eighth.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Takes seat Tuesday
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Plawecki is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game at Pittsburgh, Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reports.
Plawecki is 3-for-29 through nine games in August and will head to the bench Tuesday for the second time in Boston's past three contests. Reese McGuire will work behind the plate and form a battery with Nick Pivetta.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Resting Saturday
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Plawecki will be on the bench Saturday against the Yankees, Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic reports.
Plawecki has emerged as Boston's primary catcher after the team sent Christian Vazquez to Houston at the trade deadline, though he's not far above Saturday's starter Reese McGuire on the depth chart. He may not even be ahead at all, as both backstops have started five times in the last 10 games.
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Red Sox's Kevin Plawecki: Day off Wednesday
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Plawecki will sit Wednesday against Atlanta, Ian Browne of MLB.com reports.
Plawecki will get a breather after he went 1-for-5 with a double in Tuesday's loss. Reese McGuire will take over behind the plate and bat seventh in the series finale.
