Hunt and Peck

Yairo Muñoz has peaced the heck out of Training Camp - A Hunt and Peck

And has been released by the Cardinals.

By lil_scooter93 Mar 9, 2020, 2:00pm EDT

Yairo Muñoz has spent the past two seasons with the Cardinals after he was aquired from the Athletics as a minor leaguer in the Stephen Piscotty trade. During that time Muñoz appeared in 196 games, many coming off the bench. His versatility around the infield made him a valuable contributor, even if that does not show directly in his stats.

So why, when he has a minor league option remaining, would the Cardinals release him? Well, it appears it was not exactly the team’s call.

He left the team, flew home. Never contacted team. Agent tells #cardinals Munoz was frustrated with his role, “saw writing on the wall.” https://t.co/FxMQMRCxPH
— Derrick S. Goold (@dgoold) March 7, 2020

The whole thing seems very strange. Per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post Dispatch, the Cardinals were caught completely off-guard.

“More opportunities were going to come Yairo’s way with the extra (spot) on the bench,” Shildt said. “He was going to see more opportunities. I wish him the best. I wish I had a better explanation. It’s been baffling.”

The good news is the response from his agent seems to imply Muñoz is okay, which was a main concern when he left so suddenly and without notice. So with that being said Yairo Muñoz is now a free agent and the Cardinals have another spot on their roster to fill. Could this leave an opening for someone like Dylan Carlson? Will the Cardinals be cautious with Carlson out of fear of stalling his development? We will just have to wait and see.

Yairo Muñoz released from Cardinals | St. Louis Cardinals

Before injury exam, Munoz left team without notice and flew home, so Cardinals released him | Derrick Goold: Bird Land | stltoday.com

Cardinals Release Yairo Munoz | MLB Trade Rumors