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Baltimore Orioles utility player Steve Tolleson has elected for free agency by rejecting his outright assignment from the club, reports Roch Kubatko of MASN:
Steve Tolleson declined his outright assignment and will become a free agent. #orioles could re-sign him to minor league deal.
— Roch Kubatko (@masnRoch) November 6, 2012
Tolleson, 29, appeared in twenty-nine games for the Orioles this season, hitting .183/.227/.310 with two home runs in seventy-six plate appearances while splitting time at five different positions.
His brief time with Baltimore in 2012 was Tolleson's second cup of coffee with a big-league club, having appeared in twenty-five games for the Oakland Athletics in 2010. The righty-hitting Tolleson fared much better his first time around in the league, hitting .283/.340/.408 with a home run in fifty-three plate appearances.
A fifth-round draft pick by the Twins in 2005, Tolleson has eight professional seasons under his belt and is a career .282/.370/.407 hitter in the minor leagues.