Saints Acquire Zach Walters from T-Bones

Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

The St. Paul Saints offense has been fairly dormant over the last few weeks, so manager George Tsamis decided to shake things up on Monday, trading second baseman Noah Perio Jr. to the Kansas City T-Bones in exchange for a former major leaguer Zach Walters.

Walters has been a spark for the T-Bones this season, batting .279 with six home runs and 34 runs batted in through 46 games. He recorded a season-high 11-game hitting streak from June 8-18 and had a streak of five straight games with an RBI from June 11-15.

The former big leaguer spent parts of four seasons with the Washington Nationals, Cleveland Indians and Los Angeles Dodgers. He was a ninth-round pick out of the University of San Diego in 2010. His pro career got started with the Yakima Bears where he batted .302 with four home runs and 43 RBIs in 69 games.

He was rewarded for his efforts by being named to the Northwest League Postseason All-Star team.

His first taste of the big leagues came in 2013 when he played in eight games for the Nationals, batting .375 in just eight at-bats with one triple. His best season in the major leagues came in 2014 when he split time between the Washington Nationals and Cleveland Indians, playing a total of 62 games, compiling a .181 batting average and 10 home runs with 17 RBIs.

February 27, 2016; Goodyear, AZ, USA; Cleveland Indians third baseman Zach Walters (6) poses for a picture during photo day at the Cleveland Indians Player Development Complex. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Walters has spent the last two seasons with the T-Bones and had his contract purchased by the Kansas City Royals at the end of the 2017 season. He spent his time in the Royals organization primarily at Double-A Northwest Arkansas, where he hit .211 with one home run and eight RBI before being placed on the disabled list for the remainder of the season.

At the time of the trade, Perio was batting .311 with no home runs and 17 RBI in 44 games. The former Sioux City Explorer had been signed as a free agent prior to this season and had been the Saints’ starting second baseman.


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