SEATTLE (AP) - The Oakland Athletics signed former All-Star infielder Jake Lamb on Monday after he was designated for assignment last week by the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The move with Lamb made sense after Oakland lost Gold Glove third baseman Matt Chapman last week. Chapman suffered a strained right hip and is expected to undergo surgery.
The 29-year-old Lamb looked like a future star at third base just a few years ago. He hit 29 homers in 2016 and then made the NL All-Star team in 2017 while setting career-highs with 30 homers and 105 RBIs. Since then, he’s battled injuries and inconsistency and hit just 12 homers over the past three seasons.
He didn’t get much playing time for the Diamondbacks this season and had just five hits in 43 at-bats for a .116 average. He had a prorated salary of $2,042,593. After Lamb was released last week, Arizona GM Mike Hazen said he still believes in Lamb as a player but he needed at-bats that the Diamondbacks couldn’t provide.
The A’s cleared a spot on the 40-man roster by moving left-handed pitcher A.J. Puk to the 45-day injured list.
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