Rays Sign Juan Miranda, Three Others To Minor League Deals

The Tampa Bay Rays agreed to minor-league deals with four players, headlined by first baseman Juan Miranda, according to Marc Topkin of the St. Petersburg Times reports. The three others were infielder Matt Mangini and right-handed pitchers Jhohnny Nunez and Ricky Orta.

Juan Miranda, formerly of the New York Yankees and most recently the Arizona Diamondbacks, started 2011 as Arizona's starting first baseman. He hit .213/.315/.402 in 202 plate appearances for the team, before being sent down to Class Triple-A Reno. The 28-year-old can take a walk and hit for some power, but he doesn't seem to be much more than a minor-league bat.

Matt Mangini joins the club after being released by the Seattle Mariners earlier in the year. He's still only 25-years-old, and is a former first-round pick. He had some personal issues last season, perhaps the cause of the release; he hit .336/.399/.409 last season in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.