The Padres reassigned Mitchell to minor-league camp Monday.
Mitchell was attending camp as a non-roster invitee but didn't do enough in spring training to make a legitimate run at an Opening Day roster spot, as he slashed .227/.280/.455 over 11 Cactus League games. He's likely to begin the season with the Padres' Triple-A affiliate in El Paso.
Mitchell signed a minor-league contract with the Padres on Wednesday and received an invitation to major-league spring training, Britt Ghiroli of The Athletic reports.
Mitchell spent the vast majority of 2023 with the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate, slashing .261/.333/.414 with 55 RBI across 316 plate appearances. With a .626 OPS across 237 major-league plate appearances in his career, Mitchell's role with San Diego will likely be limited to organizational depth.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Outrighted to Triple-A
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Pittsburgh outrighted Mitchell to Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday, Kevin Gorman of TribLive.com reports.
Mitchell was designated for assignment by the Pirates on Friday and passed through waivers unclaimed. The 24-year-old outfielder is a career .222/.284/.343 hitter in 237 major-league plate appearances.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Designated for assignment
Rotowire
The Pirates designated Mitchell for assignment Friday.
The 24-year-old will cede his spot on the 40-man roster to Miguel Andujar, whose contract was selected from Triple-A Indianapolis in a corresponding move. Mitchell appeared in two games for the Pirates in 2023 but has otherwise spent the season at Indianapolis, where he slashed .264/.338/.426 with nine home runs and 53 RBI across 300 plate appearances. He had been sidelined for much of the past two months with an undisclosed injury, but he appears to be healthy again after Indianapolis activated him from its 7-day injured list Tuesday.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Optioned to Triple-A
Rotowire
Mitchell was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Friday.
Mitchell will head back to Triple-A after being called up Tuesday, going 0-for-4 with a walk and a strikeout while appearing in two games during a series with the Cubs. In a corresponding move, Pittsburgh selected the contract of prospect Nick Gonzales from Indianapolis.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Recalled from Triple-A
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Pittsburgh recalled Mitchell from Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday.
Mitchell will get his first major-league action of the season after posting a decent .276/.353/.427 batting line with seven home runs and six stolen bases through 64 games at the Triple-A level. He slashed .226/.286/.349 with five homers and three steals over 69 big-league games in 2022.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Off Opening Day roster
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Mitchell was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis on Sunday, Rob Biertempfel of The Athletic reports.
Mitchell played in 69 games during his first taste of the big leagues last year and had a .226/.286/.349 slash line with five home runs and three steals. He won't open 2023 on the MLB roster, with Bryan Reynolds, Jack Suwinski and Andrew McCutchen (elbow) poised to operate as the Pirates' primary outfielders.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Sitting again Wednesday
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Mitchell is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cardinals.
Mitchell will remain on the bench with southpaw Matthew Liberatore on the bump for the Cardinals, marking the third straight absence for the lefty-hitting outfielder. With a .638 OPS over 231 plate appearances during his rookie season, Mitchell won't necessarily have a strong case to open the 2023 campaign in a near-everyday role for the Pirates.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Sits again Tuesday
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Mitchell is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Cardinals.
Mitchel is 6-for-14 with two doubles, a walk, three runs and a stolen base over his past five games but will take a seat Tuesday for Pittsburgh's second straight contest. Bryan Reynolds, Ji Hwan Bae and Jack Suwinski will start from left to right in the outfield.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Out of Monday's lineup
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Mitchell isn't starting Monday against the Cardinals.
Mitchell will head to the bench after he went 3-for-6 with two doubles, two walks and a strikeout over the last two games. Jack Suwinski will take his place in right field and bat eighth.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Heads to bench Friday
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Mitchell is out of the lineup for Friday's game against the Cardinals.
Mitchell started the past four games and will take a seat after he went 3-for-13 with three walks, a run and a stolen base. Jack Suwinski will shift to right field while Ji-hwan Bae starts in right.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Swipes third bag
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Mitchell went 1-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base in a 4-1 win Tuesday over the Reds.
Mitchell singled in the second and walked and stole second in the fourth. He was replaced in the field in the eighth inning by Ben Gamel. It was his third stolen base of the season and second since Sept. 12. The 23-year-old has been on base often since returning to the majors at the beginning of September, walking 11 times in 74 plate appearances and posting a .351 OBP.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Not in lineup
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Mitchell will sit Saturday against the Cubs.
Mitchell hasn't started a game against a lefty since his return to the majors at the start of September. That setup seems to be working fairly well for him, as he owns a respectable .725 OPS this month after struggling to a .577 OPS in his previous stints with the team. He'll sit against southpaw Wade Miley, with Diego Castillo getting the nod in right field.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Sits against left-hander
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Mitchell isn't starting Wednesday against Cincinnati.
Mitchell will head to the bench for the third time in the last five games since southpaw Nick Lodolo is starting for the Reds. Diego Castillo is starting in right field and batting sixth.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Slugs fifth homer
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Mitchell went 1-for-7 with a two-run home run across both games of Tuesday's doubleheader against the Reds.
Mitchell took Luis Cessa deep in the sixth inning of the first game of the Pirates' doubleheader. It was the fifth home run of his career and first since being recalled to the majors on Sep. 2. In 10 games since, Mitchell has maintained a .367 average with three RBI, four runs scored and a stolen base. Though he sits against most lefties, Mitchell has carved out a regular role in the Pittsburgh outfield.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Sits against lefty again
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Mitchell is out of the lineup for Monday's game in Cincinnati.
The lefty-hitting Mitchell will bow out of the lineup versus a lefty (Mike Minor) for the second game in a row. Greg Allen will fill in for Mitchell in the corner outfield.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Catches breather Sunday
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Mitchell is not in the lineup for Sunday's game against the Cardinals.
Mitchell reached base seven times over the last two games, but he will be held out Sunday with the Pirates facing lefty Jose Quintana. Greg Allen will start in right field in Mitchell's place.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Perfect day at plate
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Mitchell went 3-for-3 with a run scored, a walk and an RBI in Friday's 8-2 win over St. Louis.
He came home on Oneil Cruz's triple in the fifth inning, and Mitchell later poked his own RBI single in the eighth. He's now 7-for-19 (.368) with two runs scored through six games since being recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis. On the year, he's slashing .224/.269/.340 with 14 RBI and 14 runs scored through 50 contests.
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Pirates' Cal Mitchell: Reaches base twice in return
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Mitchell went 1-for-2 with a walk Friday against the Blue Jays.
Mitchell was recalled from Triple-A Indianapolis on Thursday when rosters expanded, and he was in the lineup Friday thanks to the absence of Ben Gamel (foot). Mitchell had a breakout season with Triple-A Indianapolis, maintaining a .406 wOBA and 146 wRC+ across 261 plate appearances. He's also had 149 plate appearances in Pittsburgh but maintained only a .209/.250/.338 line in that sample.
