Rangel

Ravelo

As is often the case at this time of year, there were no real surprises among this first group of cuts for the Mariners. Abbott appeared in just one Cactus League game, issuing three walks and giving up two earned runs in his lone inning of work. He’ll begin the season as extra bullpen depth for the M’s at Triple-A Tacoma.

Ravelo hasn’t played in the majors since the 2020 season with St. Louis before he spent a year Japan. He signed a minor league deal with the Padres last offseason and hit .310/.428/.473 with eight homers and 35 RBI across 203 plate appearances. He’ll add depth to the upper levels on the minor league for the Mariners.

The 30-year-old hasn’t seen any big league action since the truncated 2020 season. He spent the 2021 campaign in Japan where he hit just .217 with two homers and 10 RBI in 183 plate appearances for the Orix Buffaloes. He’ll add depth in the upper levels of the minor leagues for the Padres.

Ravelo, who inked a minor-league deal with the Dodgers in the offseason, was tearing the cover off the ball in the hitter-friendly ballparks of the Triple-A Pacific Coast League, slashing .407/.504/.758 with eight homers in 113 plate appearances at Oklahoma City. Despite numerous injuries, the former Cardinals’ first baseman never got the call in Los Angeles, and opted to pursue a deal in Japan earlier this month.

Ravelo has managed just a .601 OPS during his brief time in the majors. He had a deal in place overseas last offseason before the Cards decided to keep him, so perhaps he’ll revisit that option.

Ravelo drove in a run with a sac fly in the third, but the big blow was a two-run shot in the sixth that extended the Cardinals’ lead to 12-2. It’s the first homer in his four games with St. Louis this season, and he’s now driven in five. Ravelo has some offensive upside, but is best left on the waiver wire in redraft formats.

Ravelo was part of the outbreak of cases with the team last month. He is back to serve as a pinch-hitter/occasional designated hitter.

Ravelo was among the Cardinals players cleared to resume workouts after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month. He’ll get in some at-bats at the alternate site before the Cards decide what to do with the 28-year-old. He was hitless in two at-bats before the diagnosis.

Paul DeJong, Rangel Ravelo, and Kodi Whitley have also been cleared, and all four of those players participated in a workout at Busch Stadium on Tuesday afternoon. Carlos Martinez and Edmundo Sosa got clearance on Monday. St. Louis should start getting some of these guys back in the fold within the next week or two.

Ravelo is one of the confirmed COVID-19 positives on the Cardinals’ 30-man roster. He will have to return two negative test results across a 24-hour span before he’s allowed to return to the club.