Oakland Athletics Designate Reliever For Assignment to Make Room For JD Davis

The Oakland Athletics have designated right-handed pitcher Ángel Felipe for assignment, the team announced Saturday afternoon.

Felipe underwent Tommy John surgery on Friday. Oakland put out a media release confirming the relief pitcher would be out for the entire 2024 season.

The Athletics had to free up a spot on their roster in order to complete their signing of veteran third baseman JD Davis. Instead of stashing Felipe on the 60-day injured list to take care of the conundrum, the Athletics decided to either trade him, place him on unconditional release waivers or assign him to the minor leagues.

If Felipe goes unclaimed on waivers and no teams come calling with a trade offer, he will likely remain a member of the Athletics franchise as he progresses through his recovery and eventual rehab process.

Felipe was a longtime Tampa Bay Rays prospect, signing with the club in 2015. He made it as far as High-A before getting let go in 2021, at which point he latched on with the San Diego Padres.

After splitting 2022 between Double-A and Triple-A, Felipe struggled in Triple-A to start 2023. The Athletics picked him up off waivers in June and actually called him up to the big leagues just before the All-Star break.

Felipe sprained the UCL in his right elbow in August and landed on the injured list for the rest of the season. He finished the year 1-1 with a 4.20 ERA, 1.267 WHIP, 11.4 strikeouts per nine innings and a 0.2 WAR across 14 appearances.

It appears as if Felipe's injury returned this Spring, as the 26-year-old righty did not appear in a single Cactus League contest prior to his surgery.