Saltalamacchia announced his retirement from Major League Baseball on Monday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
Saltalamacchia called it a career after appearing in just five games for the Tigers during the 2018 campaign. He joined forces with seven different teams over the course of his 12-year career and finishes with a .232/.306/.408 slash line along with 110 home runs and 381 RBI over 895 total games.
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Tigers' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Heads to big leagues Sunday
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia's contract was selected from Triple-A Toledo on Sunday.
The 33-year-old failed to make the big-league roster out of spring training, and his performance at Triple-A during the season did little to warrant a promotion. He batted just .174 with the Mud Hens while striking out 32 percent of the time. Saltalamacchia has a bit of pop, but he poses as little more than a third-string catcher for the remainder of the season.
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Tigers' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Gets cut from camp
Rotowire
The Tigers reassigned Saltalamacchia to their minor-league camp Thursday.
Saltalamacchia was a late arrival to spring training after remaining unsigned until landing a minor-league deal from Detroit in March, but he would have had difficulty cracking the Opening Day roster even if had stood out throughout the Grapefruit League schedule. Though he offers some pop behind the plate, Saltamacchia's sky-high strikeout rates and sketchy defense make him a less-than-ideal option as a No. 2 backstop.
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Tigers' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: In camp with Tigers
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia is in camp with the Tigers on Friday, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.
Saltalamacchia is expected to sign a minor-league deal with the club. The journeyman catcher has appeared in 890 games in his 11-year major-league career, including 92 with the Tigers in 2016. He received just 26 major-league plate appearances for Toronto last season and hit .162/.271/.243 in 33 games for Triple-A Buffalo.
The Blue Jays released Saltalamacchia from his minor-league contract with Triple-A Buffalo on Friday.
Saltalamacchia joined the Bisons on a minor-league deal May 16, just 13 days after being released by the Jays following his .117 OPS and 16 strikeouts in 26 MLB plate appearances. The 32-year-old had a .162/.271/.243 slash line in 33 games with Buffalo. A veteran catcher might draw some appeal on the open market, but Saltalamacchia is no longer worth monitoring in fantasy circles.
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Blue Jays' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Returns to Blue Jays on MiLB deal
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia signed a minor-league contract with the Blue Jays on Tuesday, Arden Zwelling of Sportsnet.ca reports.
After failing to garner any interest on the free market over the past couple weeks, Saltalamacchia will return to the team he began the season with. He only mustered one hit during his time in the big leagues, and given Toronto's choice to DFA Salty earlier in the year, he'll likely serve as nothing more than an organizational depth piece with Triple-A Buffalo moving forward.
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Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Cut loose by Toronto
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia was released by the Blue Jays on Wednesday, Mike Wilner of the Blue Jays Radio Network reports.
"Salty" was designated for assignment Friday after producing just one hit in 26 plate appearances, and it appears the veteran opted to find work elsewhere rather than spend time in Toronto's minor-league ranks. His vast big-league experience could pose some intrigue on the open market, but Saltalamacchia will have a hard time finding anything better than backup duty until he begins to show signs of life at the plate again.
Blue Jays' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Designated for assignment
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays on Friday, John Lott of the Athletic reports.
The Blue Jays finally ran out of patience with Saltalamacchia, who has struggled mightily at the plate this season. After a disappointing 2016 in which he hit for a .171 batting average, the veteran catcher is slashing .040/.077/.040 in his 26 plate appearances so far in 2017.
Blue Jays' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Developing chemistry with Marco Estrada
Rotowire
Saltalammachia received high praise from Saturday's battery mate, Marco Estrada, and the two have developed productive chemistry that could lead to more playing time for the catcher, Laura Armstrong of the Toronto Star reports.
Saltalamacchia, who signed with the Jays in the offseason, has started just two of the team's first 13 games while amassing a measly 10 at-bats. However, the door may be open to increased plate appearances after Estrada -- who struggled last time out -- pointed to the 31-year-old's influence as a key to the pitcher's seven scoreless innings. "It was the way Salty called the game. I was just trying to follow him, elevated a lot of fastballs and had them swinging at it," said the right-hander. As of now, Saltalamacchia is unworthy of a fantasy roster spot. But if he settles in as Estrada's routine catcher, the veteran could turn up as a decent punt play in daily leagues on occasion.
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Blue Jays' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Receives starting nod Saturday
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia is hitting eighth in Saturday's lineup against the Orioles.
It marks just the second start this season for the backup catcher, who is just 1-for-7 at the plate thus far. With Russell Martin struggling to a .076 average out of the gate, Saltalamacchia could make a case for more playing time with some strong offensive production -- though that may be wishful thinking considering his dismal 2016 season.
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Blue Jays' Jarrod Saltalamacchia: Gets starting nod Friday
Rotowire
Saltalamacchia is starting at catcher and batting eighth in Friday's game against the Rays, Shi Davidi of Sportsnet reports.
Russell Martin gets the day off, allowing Saltalamacchia a rare starting opportunity. The switch-hitter will look to make an immediate impact upon his new team, though he'll need to improve upon his 2016 stat line -- .171/.284/.346 -- if he is to see more regular playing time in a talented Blue Jays lineup.
