The Pittsburgh Pirates have made a move at the start of their third home stand of the season, calling up outfielder Jose Tabata and sending down relief pitcher Wilfredo Boscan.
“I’m really happy to be here again and I’ve got to continue playing like I played in Indianapolis and see what happens,” Tabata said.
The Pirates made a 40-man roster spot available for Tabata by moving infielder Justin Sellers from the 15 to 60 day disabled list.
“What he set out to do was go back to Triple-A and not reinvent but revisit,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. “He’s put in a couple of different things and some leverage into his swing that has played out for him.
Tabata excelled at Triple-A Indianapolis, batting .352 with two doubles and four RBI in 28 games. He reached base in 14 of his last 15 games while hitting .438.
In his Pirates career Tabata is a .275 hitter with 17 home runs and 122 RBI.
“We’ve all seen Jose and seen him play well,” said Hurdle. “This is the best report I’ve ever gotten on Jose from three different people. Two were inside our organization and one was outside of the organization.”
Tabata’s gave assembled media a clear vision of his expectations concerning his return back to Pittsburgh.
“I’ve got to be the old Tabata from 2010 and 2011,” Tabata said. “I played every day and this is a new chance and I hope when I play to play at the same level that I did in 2010, 2011.”
Photo courtesy: Charles LeClaire/USA TODAY Sports
