Francisco Mejia Signs Minor-League Deal With Brewers
Free-agent catcher Francisco Mejia signed a minor-league deal with the Milwaukee Brewers on Friday, according to a source. He'll head to Triple-A Nashville, where catching prospect Jackson Quero (shoulder) is dealing with a shoulder injury early in the season. The 28-year-old Mejia became a free agent when he was released by the Tampa Bay Rays on March 28. Quero could miss extended time down on the farm, so Mejia will give the team more organizational catching depth behind William Contreras and Gary Sanchez at the major-league level. The 28-year-old Mejia is a switch-hitter from the Dominican Republic and has a .239/.284/.394 career slash line with 29 home runs and 118 RBI in his seven big-league seasons with the Rays, Padres and Guardians.
The Tampa Bay Rays are working through the final stages of re-signing catcher Francisco Mejia to a minor-league deal with an invitation to major-league spring training, according to a source. Mejia was released by the Los Angeles Angels last week, but this doesn't seem to change the plan for Alex Jackson to be the backup to Rene Pinto to open the 2024 regular season. At the very least, though, the addition of Mejia will give the Rays more depth at the catching position. Unless injuries open up significant playing time for the 28-year-old Mejia, he's not going to be on the fantasy radar this year. The switch-hitting Dominican backstop hit just .227 (34-for-150) with five homers and 19 RBI in 50 games played for the Rays in 2023.
Francisco Mejia Signs Minor League Deal With The Angels
Francisco Mejia has signed a minor league deal with the Los Angeles Angels. The deal includes a spring training invite as well. Mejia put up a lackluster .227/.258/.400 batting line with five home runs and 19 RBI over 150 at-bats with Tampa Bay in 2023. He's shown some promise at the dish in years past but he's simply competing for a backup job to Angels' starting catcher Logan O'Hoppe at this point in his career.
Tampa Bay Rays catcher Francisco Mejia reportedly accepted an outright assignment to Triple-A Durham and will remain with the organization for the time being. Mejia cleared waivers after being designated for assignment recently and will now report to Durham. The 27-year-old backstop remains under team control for next season, but there's a good chance he'll be looking to latch on with another organization this winter. Before being DFA'd last week, he was hitting .227/.258/.400 with five home runs, 11 doubles, 19 RBI and 22 runs scored in 160 trips to the plate over 50 games for the Rays in his third season with the team. For now, Tampa will roll with Christian Bethancourt and Rene Pinto as their catchers on the big-league roster.
The Tampa Bay Rays activated catcher Francisco Mejia (knee) from the 10-day injured list on Tuesday and then designated him for assignment. The Rays have decided to move on from Mejia after he recovered from a left-knee sprain. The 27-year-old Dominican backstop hit .227 (34-for-150) for the Rays this year with five home runs, 11 doubles, 19 RBI and 22 runs scored in 160 plate appearances and 50 games. Mejia should be able to latch on with another organization fairly quickly as catching depth. The Rays will move forward with a combination of Christian Bethancourt and Rene Pinto as their primary catchers at the big-league level.
Tampa Bay Rays catcher Francisco Mejia (knee) will appear in a simulated game on Friday and then begin a rehab assignment next week, according to MLB.com. If all goes well, the 27-year-old could return to the Rays by Aug. 22. Mejia has been on the injured list since July 21 following a left-knee injury he sustained during a play at the plate. Over 50 games this season, the former prospect is slashing .227/.258/.400 with five long balls, 22 runs, and 19 RBI. Fantasy managers can stay away from Mejia, who should continue to back up Christian Bethancourt upon his return.
Tampa Bay Rays catcher Francisco Mejia (knee) was forced to exit early during Thursday's game against the Baltimore Orioles due to knee discomfort. He underwent further testing that revealed Mejia suffered a left knee MCL sprain. He'll now be shut down for an extended period of time. That means, Christian Bethancourt should do a majority of the catching in Tampa Bay. Also, catcher Rene Pinto was recalled to take Mejia's spot on the active roster. He was slashing .253/.306/.521 with nine homers over 37 games in Triple-A this season. He's unlikely to have much fantasy value with Bethancourt doing a majority of the catching.
Tampa Bay Rays catcher Francisco Mejia (knee) exited Thursday's game against the Baltimore Orioles with left knee discomfort. He went 1-for-2 with an RBI before leaving Thursday's contest during the seventh inning. The severity of Mejia's injury is unknown, and he is considered day-to-day. The Rays will provide an update after the game. Mejia is slashing .227/.258/.400 with five home runs, 19 RBI, and 22 runs across 50 games in 2023. Christian Bethancourt replaced Mejia in Thursday's game. Bethancourt would see an uptick in at-bats if Mejia were to miss any games. The 31-year-old is hitting .417 (5-for-12) over his last three contests.
Francisco Mejia Settles With Rays For $2.155 Million
The Tampa Bay Rays and catcher Francisco Mejia avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $2.155 million deal. The 27-year-old switch-hitting Mejia hit .242/.264/.381 with a .645 OPS, six home runs, 31 RBI and 32 runs scored in 299 plate appearances and 93 games for Tampa in 2022 in his second season with the team and sixth in the big leagues. Mejia is set to share playing time behind the dish with Christian Bethancourt in 2023, leaving him fantasy value only in two-catcher leagues. In his six major-league seasons, Mejia has slashed .241/.288/.393 with a .681 OPS, 24 home runs and 99 RBI in 305 games played.
Tampa Bay Rays catcher Francisco Mejia isn't in the starting lineup for Thursday's game against the Kansas City Royals and right-hander Max Castillo. Even though Mejia has been hot at the plate lately, he's hitting .225 with 46 strikeouts against right-handers and .386 with five strikeouts against lefties, so is absence from the lineup makes sense. Midseason acquisition Christian Bethancourt will start in his place, batting seventh and suiting up behind the dish.
