The Atlanta Braves have been busy adding depth to their organization this month. On November 15, they signed another infielder to a minor league contract — second baseman Kobe Kato.
Baseball Reference lists Kato as a second baseman, third baseman and left fielder. At Arizona in the Pac-12, he hit .350 with a .929 OPS, 34 RBI and 58 runs in 226 at-bats across 63 games during 2021.
Over the past two seasons, he’s played at various minor league levels in the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners organizations. He played 16 games at Triple-A Tacoma this past season.
Kato has never appeared in an MLB game.
In the 2021 MLB amateur draft, the Astros selected Kato in the 13th round. He finished his college career as a .344 hitter with 22 extra-base hits in 93 games.
Kato made his first minor league appearance for the Astros at Single-A in 2021. He hit .252 with a .727 OPS across Single-A and High-A during 2023.
In the 69 plate appearances he made at Triple-A this past season, Kato performed well, recording a slash line of .356/.435/.492. But he mostly played for the York Revolution in the Independent League during 2024.
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