The New York Yankees have decided to part ways with the struggling Alfonso Soriano, designating the outfielder for assignment on Sunday.
Soriano had just one hit in his last 14 at-bats and was 0-for-4 in Saturday's game against Minnesota. He was batting just .221 with six homers and 23 runs batted in through 67 games this season.
The Yankees re-acquired Soriano last July from the Cubs and he slugged 17 homers while driving in 50 runs in just 58 games for New York. He finished with a combined 34 homers and 101 RBI in 151 games for the 2013 season.
With an overcrowded outfield and Carlos Beltran filling the designated hitter role because of an elbow issue, Soriano became expendable. The move will allow Ichiro Suzuki to play more in right field.
Soriano broke into the majors with the Yankees in 1999 and spent the first five years of his career with New York before being dealt to the Texas Rangers for Alex Rodriguez. After two years with the Rangers, he was shipped to the Washington Nationals before signing a massive free-agent deal with the Cubs in November of 2006.
In 1,975 games, the seven-time All-Star has 412 homers and 1,159 RBI to go along with a .270 batting average.
The Yankees, who also acquired pitcher Brandon McCarthy from the Arizona Diamondbacks earlier Sunday, filled Soriano's roster spot with pitcher Bruce Billings.
[SportsNetwork.com]
