Pirates Activate Outfielder Greg Allen; Designate Catcher Michael Perez For Assignment

The trade of Daniel Vogelbach to the New York Mets wasn’t the only transaction for the Pittsburgh Pirates on a busy Friday night. The Pirates also announced that they activated outfielder Greg Allen from the 60-day injured list and designated catcher Michael Perez for assignment.

Allen strained his hamstring at the end of spring training and has been rehabbing ever since. Allen impressed in nine spring games, slashing .294/.538/.765 with a triple and a pair of long balls. He looked well on his way to breaking camp with Pittsburgh prior to the injury.

Allen was claimed off waivers from the Yankees in the fall. In seven rehab games between Low-A Bradenton and Triple-A Indianapolis, Allen hit .391 with a 1.090 OPS, two doubles and a homerun. On the active roster, Allen takes the place of Vogelbach.

Allen figures to work into the outfield mix which currently features playing time from Ben Gamel, Jake Marisnick, Cal Mitchell and Diego Castillo.

Perez was optioned back to Indianapolis earlier this month but prior to that had a lengthy run behind the plate for the Bucs. In 39 games this season, Perez hit .150 with a .526 OPS and six homeruns. Three of those homers came in a single game, the first career multi-homer game for Perez.