The seven-year veteran is coming off a solid season in which he spent most of the time (67) with the Atlanta Braves, where he slashed .296/.327.505/.832 with 10 home runs and 29 RBI in 226 plate appearances.
Laureano, who spent the first five-and-a-half years of his career with the Athletics, is a career .247 hitter who primarily plays center field and right field. He was originally drafted in the 16th round of the 2014 MLB Draft by the Houston Astros but was traded to the Athletics in 2017, a year before he made his professional debut.
While his career .319 on-base percentage isn’t much to write home about, only walking 15 times last season to his 96 strikeouts, Laureano ended up being one of the Braves’ best contact hitters last season.
His .296 average with Atlanta, after being designated for assignment by the Cleveland Guardians after a brutal start to the season, was a career-high – the best since his first and second years in the league when he batted .288.
However, with an outfield consisting of Colton Cowser, Cedric Mullins, and Heston Kjerstad, along with other free agent signings such as Tyler O’Neill, Daz Cameron, and Dylan Carlson, it’s a question of where Laureano would fit on the roster.
