Reds outright De Jesus Jr. to Triple-A
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CINCINNATI -- Two more players came off of the Reds' 40-man roster on Friday. The A's claimed right-handed reliever Josh A. Smith off waivers, while the Reds outrighted utility player Iván De Jesús Jr. to Triple-A Louisville.
The departures leave the Reds' roster at 33 players.
Smith, 29, went 3-3 with a 4.68 ERA in 32 big league games (two starts), spanning 59 2/3 innings in 2016. After being taken off of the '15 roster and not being invited to big league camp this past Spring Training, he improved his numbers at Louisville following a conversion from starter to reliever and earned his way back to Cincinnati.
Used primarily in long relief, Smith made 16 appearances of at least two innings and six times threw at least three frames.
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De Jesus, 29, batted .253/.311/.312 in 104 games with one home run and 20 RBIs. He played five positions -- shortstop, third base, second base, first base and left field. As a pinch-hitter, he went 9-for-32 (.281). De Jesus spent parts of the last two seasons with Cincinnati as a bench player.
• The Reds on Friday offered condolences following the passing of Rick Steiner, a limited partner who joined the Reds' ownership group in 2006. Steiner, who was 69, was a Tony Award-winning Broadway theatre producer and patron of the arts in Cincinnati.