The New York Yankees needed some minor-league depth at the catching position, and Miguel Palma addresses that need.
Palma, the 23-year-old Venezuela native, signed a minor-league contract with the Yankees on Wednesday, according to the transactions log on his official roster page. It took at least five days for the transaction to be reflected on the log, which is somewhat common with minor-league signings.
Palma’s 7 1/2-year stint with the Houston Astros organization came to an end last month when he elected free agency. That enabled him to search around the league for opportunities to one day compete for a spot on a major league roster, and evidently, the youngster felt the Yankees were his best bet.
New York has Austin Wells installed as the starter in the big leagues with J.C. Escarra as his backup. Ben Rice is an option as well, but the Yankees likely prefer to keep the 26-year-old slugger at first base, especially now that veteran Paul Goldschmidt figures to depart in free agency.
All of those catchers are left-handed hitters, so a righty could earn an opportunity if he performs well in the minors.
Standing 5-foot-9, Palma isn’t exactly a hulking presence in the batter’s box. He hasn’t hit very much at the upper levels of the minors, either, producing a .656 OPS in 20 career games at Triple-A and a .546 OPS in 71 games at Double-A.
Palma was ranked as the No. 24 prospect in the Astros organization by MLB Pipeline last year, and the site’s scouting report emphasized that his defense was well ahead of his offense at the time. If his bat ever comes around, perhaps he could make an impact for the Yankees at the major league level.
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