The Reds have signed a right-hander Derek Law to a minor league contract, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He has been assigned to the Triple-A Louisville Bats.
Law, 31, has previously pitched for the Giants, Blue Jays and Twins, before joining the Tigers this year. He was signed to a minor league contract in April and pitched well in Triple-A this season. In 39 innings over 33 appearances, he registered a 3.23 ERA with a 27.2% strikeout rate, 6.2% walk rate and 46.2% ground ball rate.
He was selected to the big league club at the end of July but was designated for assignment less than a week later, after getting into just two MLB games. Law cleared waivers and was outrighted by the Tigers, although he was eligible to elect free agency based on the fact that he’s been previously outrighted in his career and also has over three years of MLB service time.
Law did indeed elect free agency and will now join a Cincinnati team with notable pitching depth concerns. They currently have 11 hurlers on the injured list, with seven of those being on the 60-day IL. Given those injuries and the fact that they traded Luis Castillo and Tyler Mahle at the deadline, the pitching staff is not in the strongest shape at the moment. Should they decide they need a fresh arm, Law should be an intriguing option, given his experience and solid minor league numbers this year.
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