Orioles Officially Sign Ty Wigginton
It took a week for it to be finalized, but it was finally done on Tuesday. Ty Wigginton completed and passed every one of his physicals therefore becoming the Orioles' latest offseason acquisition with a two year deal. The Wigginton signing came somewhat out of no where as the Orioles had no hole to be filled. However, Ty Wiggington provides depth to many positions as well as experience and power to the line-up.
Wigginton, at age 30, has already split time between four different ball clubs in 7 major league seasons and looks to make Baltimore his best performance of his career. Since 2006, Ty has hit 69 homeruns between the then Tampa Bay Devil Rays and the Houston Astros. Those 69 homeruns translate to what is three straight seasons of 20 or more homeruns. The only current Baltimore Orioles to ever have three straight 20 homerun seasons is Aubrey Huff who had four straight from 2002-2005.
Not only can Wigginton hit the ball out of the park, but he also can hit for a pretty good average. In 2008, Ty played in 111 games for the Houston Astros and batted .285. That .285 average would have been good enough for 4th on the Orioles behind the obvious big three of Huff, Markakis, and Roberts.
With that good average, Ty's slugging percentage wasn't slacking either. Alongside the .285 average in 2008, Ty slugged for a .526 percentage. That would have been good enough for 2nd on the Orioles in the season behind only Aubrey Huff and ahead of arguably the Orioles' best player in Nick Markakis.
What Wigginton adds to the Orioles in more of an insurance bat than an All-Star slugger. The Orioles plan to use Ty as a back-up position player in left field, third base, first base, and also at the designated hitter slot in the line-up. This is mainly because the Orioles are not going anywhere now. They would get more use out of playing players like Felix Pie now, rather than later. Also, what is seen watching the Orioles every season is the injury bug striking several times on numerous players; more specifically, Melvin Mora. Wigginton would be there on the bench waiting to fill any spot; and, unlike other years, the spots will filled with a skilled bat.
Wiggitons's Career Stats: 110 Hrs, 734 hits, .270 average, and 384 RBIs
Ariel Meredith
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