Baltimore Orioles Designate Catcher Luis Exposito For Assignment

According to MLB.com’s Britany Ghiroli, the Orioles have designated catcher Luis Exposito for assignment in wake of the Chris Snyder acquisition. The Orioles acquired Snyder on Sunday to take over as the backup catcher while Taylor Teagarden deals with a thumb injury, and it was immediately clear that the Orioles weren’t confident in Exposito when they pulled the trigger on the trade.

March 17, 2013; Clearwater, FL, USA; Baltimore Orioles catcher Luis Exposito (59) against the Philadelphia Phillies at Bright House Networks Field. The Players are wearing green for St. Patrick

The Orioles originally acquired Exposito from the Boston Red Sox as a waiver claim, and gave him the opportunity to make his big league debut in 2012. However, he recorded just one hit in his brief 18 at-bat stint in the big leagues, and proceeded to hit .268 at AAA Norfolk last season. His numbers have since declined, as he finished this month with a .218 average.

Exposito is just 26, so it’s possible he could catch on somewhere as a backup catcher. Exposito was once considered a quality catching prospect in his days as a Red Sox farm hand, so perhaps a team will take a flyer on him in hopes that he can tap into some of that potential. Otherwise, he’ll continue to provide the Orioles with quality depth at a injury-prone position.

For Snyder, he made the trip to Seattle on Monday, and was expected to be in uniform tonight against the Mariners (although Matt Wieters will presumably get the start).