Orioles claim Alex Hassan off waivers

By Roch Kubatko

Orioles

November 20, 2014, 9:09am

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The Orioles put in a waiver claim on outfielder Alex Hassan earlier this week and lost him to the Athletics.

Today the Orioles got him.

The team announced that it claimed Hassan off waivers and added him to the 40-man roster, which now contains 35 players as we approach the midnight deadline.

Hassan, a 20th-round pick of the Red Sox in the 2009 First-Year Player Draft out of Duke University, made his major league debut this summer and went 1-for-8 with five strikeouts. The A's claimed him on Monday and apparently wanted to slip him through waivers to remove him from the 40-man, but the Orioles weren't going to miss out twice.

Hassan has minor league options remaining, an important quality as the Orioles search for roster flexibility.

Executive vice president Dan Duquette said the club also values Hassan's on-base capabilities and productivity against left-handed pitching.

Hassan, 26, batted .287/.378/.426 with 40 extra-base hits and 55 RBIs in 114 games for Triple-A Pawtucket in 2014. In six minor league seasons, Hassan has batted .291/.396/.436 over 538 games and posted a .315/.434/.520 line in 648 plate appearances against left-handed pitching.

The Orioles are expected to add at least three players from within the organization to their 40-man later today.

Also, the Red Sox placed left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez on their 40-man this afternoon. The Orioles dealt Rodriguez, one of their top pitching prospects, for left-handed reliever Andrew Miller.