John Buck passed through waivers unclaimed after being designated for assignment by the Mariners last week and the veteran catcher has been released.
Buck was only owed about $500,000 for the remainder of this season, so any team that felt like he’d be an upgrade behind the plate, even in a backup role, could have claimed that contract off waivers rather than trying to sign him now as a free agent.
But the 33-year-old hit just .226 with one homer and a .579 OPS in 27 games for Seattle, hasn’t cracked a .700 OPS since 2010 when he made the All-Star team with Toronto, and reportedly frustrated the Mariners with his poor defense. He figures to latch on somewhere as a backup, but it might take a stint at Triple-A first.