Padres acquire LHP Marc Rzepczynski from Cleveland Indians
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego Padres today announced that they have acquired left-handed relief pitcher Marc Rzepczynski from the Cleveland Indians in exchange for outfielder Abraham Almonte. Executive Vice President/General Manager A.J. Preller made the announcement.
Rzepczynski, 29, (pronounced zep-CHIN-skee) has appeared in 45 games out of the bullpen this season for the Indians, pitching to a 2-3 record with a 4.43 ERA (10 ER, 20.1 IP) with 24 strikeouts against 10 walks while limiting the opposition to a .280 batting average. The 6-2, 220-pound left-hander has appeared in 322 Major League games, 23 starts, over parts of seven big league seasons with the Blue Jays (2009-11), Cardinals (2011-13) and Indians (2013-15), and has pitched to a 11-23 record with a 3.81 ERA in that time. A former fifth-round selection by the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2007 First-Year Player Draft, the University of California, Riverside product has limited left-handed hitters to a .212 batting average as well as a .286 slugging percentage over the course of his career, the seventh-lowest opponents slugging percentage of any Major League reliever since the start of the 2009 season. Additionally, he's appeared in 297 games since the start of the 2011 season, the seventh-highest total of any left-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball in that time.
Almonte, 26, has split the 2015 season between Triple-A El Paso and the Padres, hitting .275 with 18 doubles, two triples, four home runs and 35 RBI in 61 games with the Chihuahuas and .204 with three doubles and four RBI in 31 games with the big league club. The 5-9, 210-pound outfielder owns a lifetime .233 batting average with 17 doubles, one triple, five home runs, 28 RBI and 35 runs scored in 115 games over parts of three Major League seasons with the Seattle Mariners (2013-14) and Padres (2014-15). The Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, native was acquired by the Padres on this date last year from the Mariners, along with minor league RHP Stephen Kohlscheen, in exchange for OF Chris Denorfia.