Rylan

Bannon

Bannon bolster’s Minnesota’s injury-depleted corner infield depth in the upper minors coming out of the All-Star break. The 28-year-old righty hasn’t appeared in the big leagues since last year and has gotten into seven games over the last two years between the Orioles, Braves and Astros.

This one certainly qualifies as a surprise since Lucchesi was considered a potential candidate to replace an injured Kodai Senga (shoulder) in New York’s season-opening rotation. The 30-year-old southpaw allowed four runs over 1 1/3 innings this spring in his lone Grapefruit League appearance.

After bouncing around on the waiver wire for a time, Bannon spent last year with the Astros, hitting .241/.360/.449 with 18 homers in Triple-A and going 0-for-6 in the majors. In truth, that sums him up pretty well. The 27-year-old might draw interest from overseas clubs at some point, but he probably won’t ever be much of a factor in the majors.

The 27-year-old infielder has had a rough season at the Triple-A level — slashing just .230/.346/.433 with 15 homers, 43 RBI and nine stolen bases (in 17 attempts) over 350 plate appearances. He’ll continue to function as extra infield depth for the Astros down the stretch.

Bannon struggled to a .230/.346/.433 slash line with Triple-A Sugar Land this and lost his spot on the 40-man roster on Sunday. There is a chance he passes through waivers and sticks with the organization.

After being optioned to Triple-A earlier this month, the 27-year-old hit .304 before breaking his finger on Friday night. The Astros’ infield depth consists of David Hensley and Joe Perez, so hopefully, everyone in Houston can remain healthy.

Bannon has appeared in just two games this season for the Astros, going 0-for-6 at the plate. He’ll head back to the minors with Chas McCormick coming off the injured list ahead of Monday’s series opener against the Angels.

He’ll replace the injured Chas McCormick (back) on the team’s active roster. Bannon, 26, hit .191/.314/.286 with one homer and seven RBI in his first 12 games at Triple-A Sugar Land. He’ll add infield depth for the Astros.

Bannon -- who was claimed off of waivers from the Cubs in early December -- hit just .225 (9-for-40) with one homer, four RBI and a pair of stolen bases in Grapefruit League action. He’ll function as additional infield depth at the Triple-A level to begin the 2023 campaign.

This comes two weeks after the Cubs claimed him off waivers from the Braves. Bannon also spent time with the Orioles and Dodgers organizations last season, though he never made an appearance in either the majors or minors for Los Angeles. The 26-year-old ended up going 2-for-14 in the majors and hitting .249/.367/.421 in 99 games in Triple-A. We don’t see a major leaguer here, but he’s solid Triple-A depth with one option year remaining.