The Reds have sent outfielder Peyton Burdick outright to Triple-A Louisville, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week.
Burdick, now 27, showed some big promise early on in his professional career but has been struck out more and more as he has climbed the minor league ladder and reached the majors. As recently as this offseason, he was still generating plenty of interest around the league. The Marlins designated him for assignment in February, which led to Burdick bouncing to the Orioles, White Sox, O’s again and then the Reds via waiver claims or cash trades.
Despite that interest, Burdick’s season has been a big disappointment thus far. In 240 Triple-A plate appearances across two different systems, he walked at a solid 12.9% clip but was also punched out a blink-inducing 42.5% of the time. He currently sports a batting line of .188/.308/.386 for the year and no club was willing to give him a 40-man roster spot despite the fact that he’s still optionable.
Players with at least three years of service time or a previous career outright can reject another such assignment and elect free agency, but Burdick doesn’t qualify in either column. He’ll stick with the Reds in a non-roster capacity and try to get things back on track. Over the 2019 and 2021 minor league seasons, Burdick slashed .257/.382/.490 for a wRC+ of 147. His 27.1% strikeout rate was high but he walked 14.1% of the time and hit 34 home runs in his 804 plate appearances. If he can dredge up a performance like that in the future, he could earn his roster spot back with the Reds.
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