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Logan Morrison is once again out of a job. The Brewers announced Monday afternoon that he was designated for assignment. Morrison appeared in nine of the club’s first 13 games of the regular season.
Coming up through the Marlins farm system in the late 2000s, there was tremendous hype surrounding LoMo. After great offensive production at each rung of the minor league ladder, he made his big league debut on July 27, 2010. His .390 on-base percentage as a rookie led all Marlins players.
What has he been up to since then? Not much. Knee, foot, hip, hamstring, wrist and forearm injuries have kept Morrison off the field at various points. He transitioned from a corner outfielder to a first baseman early in his career and turned out to be a defensive liability there, too.
Since being traded away by the Fish, he has slashed .231/.314/.424 with a 103 wRC+ and 3.6 fWAR in 2,300 plate appearances over parts of seven seasons. Outside of his 2017 campaign with the Rays (3.2 fWAR), he’s essentially been a replacement-level player.
Though inconsistent between the lines, at least you can always count on LoMo to remain true to his brash nature. Speaking to Brewers media members in the middle of 2020 summer camp, he cited his experience at sparsely attended Marlins and Rays home games as an asset heading into a season without fans being present.
Logan Morrison, when asked about playing with no fans in stands: "For me, it's not going to be that difficult. I played for the Rays and the Marlins."
— Tom (@Haudricourt) July 13, 2020
The team needed him to be. The Brew Crew’s window to contend is on the verge of closing now that their prospect pipeline has dried up. Morrison was supposed to help them take advantage of the universal designated hitter. He made most of his starts in the cleanup spot, directly protecting former NL MVP Christian Yelich in the lineup on several occasions.
The results? A .120/.214/.280 slash line (39 wRC+).
He was begging to be dunked on, and yes, I’m hanging on the rim.
Even with expanded 28-man active rosters in effect for this season, Morrison could potentially go unclaimed by the other MLB teams. His solid batted ball quality is nullified by his glacial running speed, extreme pull tendencies and eroding contact skills. Fast approaching his 33rd birthday later this month, this may be the last we see of LoMo in a meaningful major league game.
The Brewers enter Monday night’s matchup against the Twins with a 6-7 record. Their odds of earning a third consecutive playoff berth are 55.8%, according to FanGraphs.