Wendell

Rijo

Rijo re-signed with the Phillies last December and has been cut loose after batting .187/.291/.227 with zero homers and eight RBI across 86 plate appearances this season for Double-A Reading.

Rijo spent nearly all of last season at Double-A Reading, batting .266/.353/.444 with 12 homers and 24 steals across 395 plate appearances in 94 contests. The 27-year-old will continue to augment the Phillies’ organizational infield depth.

Rijo will add some organizational infield depth for the Phillies after hitting .236/.320/.425 with 15 home runs and eight stolen bases across 365 plate appearances at Double-A Mississippi in the Braves’ minor-league system last year. The 26-year-old second baseman is a solid defender at the keystone, but has yet to appear in the majors and has played only 43 games above Double-A.

Rijo, 24, was acquired by the Yankees in 2018 in the deal that sent Erik Kratz to the Brewers. He split time at the High-A, Double-A and Triple-A levels in 2019, hitting .258/.325/.438 with 13 homers and four steals over 103 contests. He’s a solid defender, but the bat makes him nothing more than roster fodder.

Rijo is hitting .266/.370/.399 as an 18-year old playing in a full season league where the average hitter is 21. He lacks elite upside, but could be a solid second baseman, though he is blocked by Dustin Pedroia, who is signed through 2021.

The 18-year old Rijo is hitting .266/.353/.402 with 15 doubles, three triples, and four home runs despite being the fourth youngest player to start the year in the Low-A South Atlantic League. Rijo has the potential to hit .300 with 30-plus doubles and good defense.

Rijo struggled in May and June, hitting .242/.308/.358 despite a .331 BABIP, but has rebounded in July, hitting .291/.355/.618 with a .325 BABIP. Rijo will turn 19 in early September, and is likely to spend the rest of the season with Greenville before going to High-A Salem in 2015.

Rijo has been driving the ball over the past four games, hitting .438/.550/.688 with two doubles, a triple, four walks, and two stolen bases. His season line is an impressive .326/.458/.500. He is behind both Dustin Pedroia and Mookie Betts on the Red Sox depth chart, so he will be moved along slowly or used as a trade chip.

The home run was Rijo’s first as a professional, and he’s now batting .321/.441/.500 with a 7/5 strikeout-to-walk ratio in eight games to begin his full-season debut. The 19-year-old was signed out of the Dominican Republic for $575,000 in July 2012, and impressed last season in his professional debut, batting .277/.367/.375 with 16 doubles, 15 stolen bases and a 32/22 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 184 at-bats between the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League and Short-Season Lowell. He has a ways to go before reaching the major leagues, but Rijo is definitely one of the more intriguing lower-level prospects to keep an eye on this season.

Rijo, a slick-fielding second baseman, is hitting just .200/.304/.375 with four homers and 14 RBI at Double-A Biloxi this season. The 22-year-old will add minor league infield depth for the Bombers.