HOUSTON — The Houston Astros have called a news conference for Saturday amid reports the club has sign Cuban free agent infielder Yulieski Gurriel.
The club had no official comment about Gurriel’s signing, which was first reported by MLB.com. Gurriel defected from Cuba in February and has been one of the most sought-after international free agents.
Houston manager A.J. Hinch in Seattle where the Astros were opening the second-half of the season said he didn’t want to formally comment on the reports about Gurriel.
"Until things are official I’m not going to comment on it," Hinch said. "I will say that we worked him out, we had interest in him. We’ve been all over the background check and things like that. We’ll have to wait for the official announcement."
Gurriel was declared a free agent last month. He was an Olympian in 2004 and participated in the World Baseball Classic three times. MLB.com reported that Gurriel’s family changed the spelling of its last name within the past two years. His name was spelled Gourriel during the Olympics and WBC previously
