The Colorado Rockies added to their expanded September roster Tuesday as they recalled Josh Fuentes and selected the contract of Drew Butera from Triple-A Albuquerque. Raimel Tapia was also reinstated from the 10-day injured list.
With the addition of the two, the Rockies’ active roster is up to 31 players. The team also designated outfielder Noel Cuevas for assignment.
Cuevas’ possible departure from the team comes after he dealt with injuries for most of the year. In 60 games, he hit .278. The outfielder also received a promotion early in the year. With the Rockies, he was 0-for-2 in his lone game before departing with a strained left quad that required an injured-list stint.
Before his injury, Tapia was hitting .290 with the club in a career-high 373 at-bats. In the 17 games preceding his left-hand contusion, the outfielder was hitting .371.
The spots on the major league roster will be the second this year for both Fuentes and Butera.
In nine games with the club, Fuentes was 2-for-18 with eight strikeouts. For the Isotopes, he was able to put together a .254 average across 402 at-bats this year. The numbers for the versatile infielder were a stark contrast to both his spring training numbers (.301 in 83 at-bats) and his 2018 average with the Isotopes (.327).
As the year stretches on, Fuentes figures to fill in for Nolan Arenado at third base and Daniel Murphy at first base when they’re given rest days.
For Butera, the recall is his third since being acquired from the Kansas City Royals late last season. In his time with the club, the backstop has played in 17 games and hit .194.
Playing time will likely be limited for the veteran as the Rockies already have both Tony Wolters and rookie Dom Nunez in the fold at catcher. The former has already played in a career-high 103 games this year, so rest days are on the horizon.
