Athletics Claim Buddy Kennedy

The A’s announced that they’ve claimed infielder Buddy Kennedy off waivers from the Diamondbacks.  Kennedy was designated for assignment by Arizona earlier this week, and he now been optioned to the Athletics’ Triple-A club.

The 24-year-old is changing organizations for the first time in his pro career, as Kennedy has been with the D’Backs since he was a fifth-round selection in the 2017 draft.  His time in Arizona has resulted in 40 games at the Major League level, with ten of those appearances coming this season.  Kennedy hasn’t done much hitting (.206/.293/.299) over his 123 plate appearances in the bigs, and his minor league numbers are somewhat inconsistent.  However, Kennedy has taken full advantage of the hitter-friendly environment at Triple-A Reno this season, batting .318/.444/.481 over 417 PA for the Diamondbacks’ top affiliate.

Defensively, Kennedy has mostly played as a third baseman but has increasingly gotten time at second base over the last two years, plus he has seen sparing action at first base and in left field.  The waiver claim gives the A’s another versatile player to take a look at over the last few weeks of the season, and as they look ahead to 2024.

Because the D’Backs outrighted Kennedy off their 40-man roster last winter, Kennedy now has the ability to choose free agency in the event of a future DFA and clearance of waivers, which adds another wrinkle for the Athletics in whether or not they want to keep him on their 40-man roster.