A's ink Campbell, Goins, 7 more to Minors deals

OAKLAND -- The Oakland A’s agreed to terms with left-handed pitcher Lucas Luetge, right-handed pitchers Ian Gardeck, Zach Lee, Brian Schlitter and Jaime Schultz, catcher Carlos Perez and infielders Eric Campbell, Ryan Goins and Nate Orf on Minor League contracts, the club announced on Monday. All nine will be non-roster invitees to Spring Training in 2020.

Campbell returns as a non-roster invitee for the second consecutive year. He spent the entire 2019 season at Las Vegas where he batted .276 with 16 home runs and 65 RBI in 94 games. The 32-year-old right-handed hitter made 48 starts at first base, 34 at third base and four at second base. Campbell last played in the Majors with the New York Mets in 2016 and is a .221 career hitter with seven home runs and 44 RBI in 196 games in three seasons in the Majors.

Gardeck pitched for three teams in the Tampa Bay organization last year and was 2-1 with three saves, a 1.96 ERA and .122 opponents batting average in 21 relief appearances in a season that started late due to a three month stay on the injured list with an inflamed right elbow. He was a 16th round pick of San Francisco in 2012 and was selected by the Rays in the Triple-A portion of the 2018 Rule 5 Draft. The 29-year-old right-hander is 15-14 with eight saves, a 3.87 ERA and 297 strikeouts in 246.1 innings in 188 career appearances in six seasons in the Minors. Gardeck did not pitch in 2016 and 2017 after undergoing “Tommy John” surgery twice.

Goins began the season at Triple-A Charlotte in the Chicago (AL) organization and was batting .322 with 10 home runs and 48 RBI in 83 games when he was selected by the White Sox July 17. He spent the remainder of the season with Chicago, batting .250 with two home runs and 10 RBI in 52 games. The 31-year-old left-handed hitter played in 23 games at third base, 14 at shortstop, seven in right field, two at first base and one in left field in the Majors. Goins has played seven seasons in the Majors with Toronto (2013-17), Kansas City (2018) and Chicago-AL (2019) and is a .230 hitter with 22 home runs and 158 RBI in 541 games.

Lee pitched in the New York Mets farm system in 2019 and combined to go 9-4 with a 5.09 ERA in 24 games, including 21 starts, with Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse. He was originally the Los Angeles Dodgers first round pick in the 2010 draft out of high school and made his Major League debut with the Dodgers in 2015 with one start. The 28-year-old right-hander also pitched in three games for San Diego in 2017 and is 1-1 with an 8.53 ERA in four games, including two starts, in the Majors. Lee is 75-70 with a 4.46 ERA in 219 games, 209 starts, in nine seasons in the Minors.

Luetge pitched for Double-A Jackson and Triple-A Reno in the Arizona organization last year and combined for a 9-3 record, a 2.38 ERA and one save in 55 relief appearances. He struck out 74 batters in 68.0 innings and surrendered just four home runs while holding the opposition to a .231 batting average. The 32-year-old left-hander last pitched in the Majors with Seattle in 2015 and went 3-5 with a 4.35 ERA and two saves in 111 relief appearances with the Mariners from 2012-15.

Orf spent the entire season at Triple-A San Antonio in the Milwaukee organization and batted .272 with 11 home runs and 54 RBI in 125 games. He also drew 65 walks and was hit by a pitch 22 times for a .399 on-base percentage. The 29-year-old right-handed hitter appeared in 80 games in right field, 30 at second base, eight at third base, six in left field and one at shortstop. Orf made his Major League debut with Milwaukee in 2018 and went 2-for-21 (.095) with a home run in 15 games.

Perez spent most of the year at Double-A Bowie in the Baltimore organization but also played in eight games for Triple-A Norfolk. He combined to hit .243 with 14 home runs and 60 RBI in 102 games. The 29-year-old right-handed hitter tossed out 33-of-77 (42.9%) attempted base stealers and also appeared in 16 games at first base. Perez has spent four seasons in the Majors with the Angels (2015-17), Rangers (2018) and Braves (2018) and is a .215 career hitter with 11 home runs and 58 RBI in 212 games.

Schlitter was a non-roster invitee with Oakland last spring and had a six-game stint with the A’s from June 23 to July 28. He had no decisions, a 3.72 ERA and .324 opponents batting average in six relief appearances in his first big league action since 2015. The 33-year-old right-hander also went 4-1 with 11 saves and a 4.64 ERA in 35 games with Triple-A Las Vegas.

Schultz spent most of the season at Triple-A Oklahoma City where he was 2-3 with four saves, a 5.85 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 47.2 innings over 47 appearances. He also appeared in four games for Los Angeles (NL) and logged a 7.20 ERA. The 28-year-old right-hander also pitched in 22 games with Tampa Bay in 2018 and is 2-2 with a 5.86 ERA in 26 games, including one start, in two seasons in the Majors.