The St. Louis Cardinals announced today that they have purchased the contracts of outfielder Magneuris Sierra, infielder Eliezer Alvarez, infielder Edmundo Sosa and right-handed reliever Rowan Wick. All four players have been added to the team’s 40-man Major League roster which currently stands at 40.
In addition, the team confirmed that left-handed pitcher Tim Cooney was claimed on waivers earlier today by the Cleveland Indians.
Sierra, Sosa and Alvarez were all members of the Peoria Chiefs in 2016, earning Midwest League (A) All-Star selections, while Wick, a former catcher converted to pitcher, gained Florida State League All-Star honors at Palm Beach (A) this past season.
Sierra, 20, batted .307 (9th in Midwest League) with a .335 on-base percentage and 31 stolen bases (3rd) while scoring a league-best 78 runs. The left-handed hitting Sierra was the Cardinals Minor League Player of the Year in 2014 and was signed out of San Cristobal, Dominican Republic in July of 2012.
Sosa, 20, teamed with Alvarez, 22, to form the keystone combo for the Chiefs in 2016.
The right-handed hitting Sosa batted .270 in 97 games, 88 with Peoria and nine with Palm Beach. The 5-11, 170-pound shortstop is a native of Panama City, Panama and signed with the Cardinals in July of 2012.
Alvarez, 22, batted a team-high .323 (4th in MWL) in 116 games with a .404 on-base pct. (2nd), .476 slugging pct. (3rd) and .880 OPS (2nd). The switch-hitting second baseman, who was signed in July 2011 out of Santiago, Dominican Republic, led the Midwest League with 36 stolen bases this season and ranked 2nd with 36 doubles.
Wick, 24, combined to go 2-0 with a 2.44 ERA in 44 games (44.1 IP) between Palm Beach (A) and Springfield (AA), striking out 57 batters while allowing just one home run and a .186 opponent’s batting average. The 6-3, 220-pound native of North Vancouver, Canada, was drafted by the Cardinals in June of 2012 (9th round) and converted to pitching in 2015. He earned Florida State League All-Star honors at Palm Beach this year and earlier this month was a Rising Stars selection in the prospect laden Arizona Fall League where he has appeared in nine games for Glendale.
The Cardinals also announced today that they have signed the following players to minor league contracts that include invites to Major League Spring Training: OF/1B Chad Huffman; OF Todd Cunningham, INF Wilfredo Tovar, LHP Zach Phillips and RHP Kendry Flores.
