The Baltimore Orioles signed free-agent veteran infielder Vimael Machin to a minor-league deal on Monday that includes an invite to major-league spring training, according to a source. Machin played ball in Mexico this past season but was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 10th round in 2015 out of Virginia Commonwealth and played parts of three seasons with the Athletics from 2020-22. In his 112 games (361 plate appearances), he slashed a weak .208/.290/.261 with a homer, 14 RBI, one steal and 38 runs scored. The 31-year-old Puerto Rican infielder went off in Mexico, though, batting .401/.495/.579 with seven home runs in 85 games played. The left-handed hitter is a long shot to be anywhere that good in spring training in 2025 as he looks to try and win a spot on Baltimore's big-league roster as a utility infielder.

Oakland Athletics third baseman Vimael Machin went 2-for-4 with a run scored, a walk and a strikeout in the 7-5 loss to the Washington Nationals on Thursday. The rebuilding A's are giving Machin plenty of playing time as the regular season draws to a close, but he hasn't been doing much for fantasy managers in AL-only leagues. The 28-year-old hit .246 (17-for-69) with no home runs, two RBI, eight runs scored and 13 strikeouts in 24 games in the month of August. In his last six games, he's gone 3-for-17 (.177) with a run scored and five strikeouts. In 145 at-bats in 2022, Machin is slashing a weak .221/.299/.276 with a homer, six RBI, 14 runs scored and one stolen base.

The Oakland Athletics are calling up infielder Vimael Machin from the minors on Thursday. Machin went 4-for-32 (.125) with an RBI, three walks and 10 strikeouts in 15 games for the A's earlier this year, but he's had a breakout offensive season at Triple-A Las Vegas, slashing .324/.401/.457 with an .858 OPS, four home runs, 49 RBI and 41 runs scored in 64 games. The 28-year-old could easily see more consistent at-bats at the major league level this time around for a struggling A's team, which could make Machin valuable in deep mixed and AL-only leagues if he's playing regularly. Machin is also extremely versatile with his glove, as he can play shortstop, third base and second base.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Oakland Athletics added pitcher Jordan Weems to their AL Division Series roster against the Houston Astros. The right-handed reliever made his major league debut on July 28 against Colorado, giving up two runs in four innings. He had a 3.21 ERA in 14 innings during the pandemic-shortened regular season. “It was tough not having him in the first round,” A's manager Bob Melvin said. “(With) five games in a row, we’ve talked about the potential of using your bullpen that much more. It's nice to have a lot of pitching.” The A's will carry 14 pitchers and 14 position players for the best-of-five series beginning Monday at Dodger Stadium. They dropped infielder Vimael Machin, who didn't appear in the wild-card series win over the Chicago White Sox. The Astros added right-handed reliever Luis Garcia to their roster for the ALDS. He had a 2.92 ERA in 12 1/3 innings during the regular season. They will carry 13 pitchers and 15 position players. They dropped reserve infielder Jake Mayfield. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports