The San Francisco Giants made a move to address their second-base woes on Monday, agreeing to a minor-league deal with veteran Dan Uggla, who was released by the Atlanta Braves on Friday.
Giants confirm they've signed Uggla to a AAA deal. He'll join Fresno after a physical. Has Aug. 1 opt out. 1st reported by @Ken_Rosenthal
— Andrew Baggarly (@CSNBaggs) July 21, 2014
The 34-year-old signed a five-year, $62-million deal with the Braves prior to the 2011 campaign, but was released last week after two consecutive seasons of abysmal performance. Uggla, a three-time All-Star, has hit just .175/.295/.332 with 24 home runs since the beginning of 2013, and lost his starting job to Tommy La Stella in early May.
The Giants, however, have received negligible production from second base this season in the absence of veteran Marco Scutaro, who spent most of the first half of the season on the disabled list. The club's contingent of second basemen - primarily Brandon Hicks, Ehire Adrianza, and Joe Panik - have combined to hit just .180/.265/.288 with seven home runs in 2014.
