The Toronto Blue Jays announced that they have claimed first basemen Matt Hague off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Blue Jays announced the move on their Twitter page. Hague, 28, was designated for assignment last week to make room on the 40-man roster for right-handed reliever John Axford, who the Pirates had claimed off waivers from the Cleveland Indians.
Matt Hague was drafted by the Pirates' organization back in 2008 in the fourth round. Hague will be reporting to the Blue Jays' Triple-A affiliate at Buffalo, where he will look to help the team make a playoff run.
Hague was slashing .267/.365/.448 with 14 home runs and 66 runs batted in for the Indianapolis Indians, the Pirates' Triple-A affiliate, with 66/46 strikeouts-to-walks ratio. He was also named to the International League All-Star Game this season.
Hague made a very brief appearance with the Pirates' major-league club, as he only accumulated two at-bats this season. He played in 39 games for the Pirates in 2012, where he slashed .229/.270/.257 with no home runs and seven runs batted in, along with two doubles. In his seven-year minor-league career, he has hit .293/.367/.425 with 67 home runs and 432 runs batted in. Hague was also named the International League MVP back in 2011.