30 year old infielder Felipe Lopez was a late sign last offseason, agreeing to a $1 million, one-year contract with the Cardinals at the end of February despite posting an .810 OPS the year before. He was expected to serve as infield depth off the bench, and has indeed amassed 425 trips to the plate over five and a half months, but as of Tuesday, with just two weeks remaining in the 2010 season, Lopez has been released by the organization.
Cardinals Release Infielder Felipe Lopez
News spread earlier in the morning that Lopez had been sent home by the team, so it makes sense that they would follow it up by releasing him outright. It seems there were two contributing factors: Lopez showed up late for Monday’s game - which wasn’t the first time he’d been tardy - and, in addition, he wasn’t in line to get any playing time the rest of the way anyway, with younger players hanging around.
Lopez ends his season with a batting line of just .231/.310/.340, well down from his career averages. Though his versatility makes him useful, and though he doesn’t turn 31 until next May, one wonders just how much interest he’ll garner this offseason, given his struggles and attitude concerns. The Cardinals are not the first team to question his commitment.
You can check out more on Lopez and the Cardinals over at Viva El Birdos.
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