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Tuffy Gosewich’s time in the desert has officially come to an end. This apparently clears up any debates as to who will be #2 behind Welington Castillo for 2017, as Chris Herrmann is now the only member of the organization that could be deemed MLB-ready.
While the departure of Gosewisch is not a terrible blow to the competitive nature of the team, it does mark the departure of another fan favorite. The 33-year-old out of Arizona State University was drafted in the 11th round of the 2005 draft by the Philadelphia Phillies. He was later purchased by the Blue Jays in 2012. Unable to crack the roster for Toronto, he was eventually released and then signed by the Arizona Diamondbacks. He finally made his MLB debut on August 1, 2013, after nine seasons of toiling in the minors.
His time in Arizona was mostly uneventful. In 126 games spread out ofver four seasons, Gosewisch managed a .199/.237/.289 triple slash and managed a whopping five home runs. Defensively, Gosewisch was much better. He managed to throw out 35% of would-be base stealers in his time against a league average of 28%. He has also been credited during his time in Arizona with being a good handler of pitchers.
It appears that Gosewisch is a depth move by Atlanta, where Gosewisch will compete to be the back-up for Tyler Flowers. Meanwhile, it remains to be seen what, if anything, the Diamondbacks have planned for their catching corps with Gosewisch’s departure.