Channeling his inner Jon Albaladejo, former Yankee farmhand Marcos Vechionacci has signed on with the Hanshin Tigers as an ikusei player according to NPB Tracker. An ikusei player is basically the Japanese equivalent of a minor league contract; you can learn all about it here.
Vech was once one of the Yankees’ most promising prospects (and also a personal fave), a switch-hitting shortstop/third baseman that put up a .373 wOBA across three levels as a 17-year-old. The Yanks rushed him up the ladder at a time when they needed trade chips, and it killed his development. Vechionacci enjoyed the best season of his career in 2010, wOBA’ing .350 as a 23-year-old corner infielder with Double-A Trenton, though he became a minor league free agent after the season. Good luck to him.
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