Phillies Announce Spring Training Non-Roster Invitees

The Phillies have signed 10 players to minor league contracts with invitations to attend major league spring training as non-roster invitees.

January 3rd, 2018

The Phillies have signed the following 10 players to minor league contracts with invitations to attend major league spring training as non-roster invitees:
Pedro Beato, RHP - The 31-year-old Beato posted a 2.75 ERA in 52 games for triple-A Lehigh Valley last season, leading all of Minor League Baseball with 33 saves and pacing the International League with 48 games finished. The Dominican Republic native appeared in one game with Philadelphia in July, and has seen action in 85 major league contests with the New York Mets (2011-12), Boston Red Sox (2012-13), Atlanta Braves (2014) and Phillies (2017), posting a 4.31 ERA.
Pedro Florimón, INF - Florimón, 31, spent the majority of the 2017 season with Lehigh Valley, where he played in 90 games at second base, third base, shortstop, all three outfield positions and DH. The switch-hitter, who has appeared in major league games each year since 2011, batted .348 with four doubles, a triple and six RBI in 15 games after joining the Phillies in mid-August. A veteran of 271 major league contests in parts of seven seasons, Florimón made starts at second base, shortstop and all three outfield positions for Philadelphia before a dislocated ankle ended his season on September 5.
Eric Fryer, C - Originally selected by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 10th round of the June 2007 draft, Fryer caught 26 games for the St. Louis Cardinals last season, throwing out three of eight attempted base stealers. The 32-year-old has played 159 major league games (132 as a catcher) for the Pittsburgh Pirates (2011-12; 2016), Minnesota Twins (2013-15) and Cardinals (2016; 17), batting .232 with 14 doubles, two home runs, 27 RBI and 41 walks.
Steve Geltz, RHP - Geltz posted a 2.67 ERA in 23 relief appearances for triple-A Oklahoma City in 2017, striking out 29 batters in 27.0 innings while holding opponents to a .218 average. After making two appearances for the Los Angeles Angels in 2012, he pitched in 108 games for the Tampa Bay Rays between 2014-16, including a career-high 70 during the 2015 season.
Matt McBride, C/1B/OF - A native of Bethlehem, Pa., and a product of Lehigh University, McBride batted .231 with 19 doubles and 10 home runs in 79 games for triple-A Nashville last season. The 32-year-old split time defensively at catcher, outfield and first base, appearing in more than 20 games at each position. Originally a compensation round pick (75th overall) by the Cleveland Indians in 2006, McBride has batted .293 with 130 home runs and 651 RBI in 1,000 minor league games and has played in the majors in parts of four seasons with the Colorado Rockies (2012; 2014-15) and Oakland Athletics (2016).
Heiker Meneses, INF - A veteran of 10 minor league seasons, Meneses, 26, spent last season in the Boston Red Sox system and played in a total of 88 games with double-A Portland and triple-A Pawtucket. In 68 games with Pawtucket, Meneses, a native of Caracas, VZ, hit .291, which included a .386 mark versus left-handers.
Will Middlebrooks, INF - A 2013 World Series Champion with the Boston Red Sox, Middlebrooks has played in the major leagues for the Red Sox (2012-14), San Diego Padres (2015), Milwaukee Brewers (2016) and Texas Rangers (2017). Originally selected by Boston in the fifth round of the 2007 draft, Middlebrooks has appeared in 322 games at third base, eight at shortstop, five at first base and two at second base in his career. In 78 games for triple-A Round Rock last season, Middlebrooks hit .258 with a .327 on-base percentage, .529 slugging percentage, 23 home runs and 64 RBI.
Logan Moore, C - Moore, 27, played in 64 games for Lehigh Valley last season. He batted .233 with a .310 on-base percentage and .362 slugging percentage over 240 plate appearances for the IronPigs. A native of Scranton, Pa., Moore will attend his third consecutive spring training with the major league club in 2018.
Danny Ortiz, OF - A fourth-round selection of the Minnesota Twins in the 2008 draft, Ortiz, 27, played in 110 games for Indianapolis, the triple-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates last season and hit .270 with 30 doubles and 15 home runs. A native of Caguas, PR, he made his major league debut for Pittsburgh last season and appeared in nine games for the Pirates.
Mitch Walding, INF - Selected by the Phillies in the fifth round of the 2011 draft, Walding, 25, posted an .842 on-base plus slugging percentage in 99 games for Reading last season. He hit 13 home runs in June, most among all minor leaguers for the month and tied with the Los Angeles Dodgers' Cody Bellinger for most among any affiliated player. Walding averaged a home run every 14.04 at bats for Reading in 2017, the third-best ratio in the Eastern League.