Ex-Yankees slugger, N.J. native gets another crack at MLB pitching thanks to NL contender

Mike Ford is back in the big leagues. Again.

Rotoworld reports the Atlanta Braves recalled Ford from Triple-A Gwinnett.

“Ford … will provide the Braves with some extra position player flexibility off the bench with teams forced to cut back to 13 pitchers on active rosters.”

Last week, MLB Trade Rumors reported “The Braves announced they’ve claimed first baseman Mike Ford off waivers from the Mariners and optioned him to Triple-A Gwinnett.”

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Ford has been a road warrior this season. The 29-year-old signed a minor-league deal with the Mariners in March before being designated for assignment by Seattle in April.

In May, the San Francisco Giants acquired Ford in a trade with the Mariners.

Ford played in one game for the Giants, going 1-for-4 with a pair of RBI in an 11-5 loss to the Washington Nationals on May 1.

San Francisco then demoted Ford to Triple-A Sacramento and eventually designated him for assignment to open a spot on the 40-man roster before trading him back to the Mariners for cash considerations.

Ford played in 16 games for the Mariners, hitting .172 with 12 strikeouts.

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Ford is a native of Belle Mead, N.J. and played his college ball at Princeton before joining the Yankees as an undrafted free agent in 2012.

Ford made his MLB debut in 2019 and impressed, slugging 12 home runs in 50 games. But he saw limited action the following two seasons and was traded in June of 2021 to the Tampa Bay Rays for a player to be named that turned out to be outfielder prospect Aldenis Sanchez. Two months later, Ford was claimed off waivers by the Nationals.

In 118 games over four big-league seasons, Ford is hitting .197 with 17 home runs.

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Mike Rosenstein may be reached at mrosenstein@njadvancemedia.com.

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