Yankees lose former top prospect to division rival Orioles in latest roster shuffle

The New York Yankees' roster is nearly settled, with spring training on the horizon. Unfortunately, that also means it's full; any last-minute additions (cough, infielder) will have to come at the expense of a currently rostered player. For that reason, peeling off a few pieces of the 40-man roster in a trade would be more appealing than a late February free agent signing.

On Friday, the Yankees were victimized by their own recent shuffling yet again. Needing to clear a place for left-hander Tim Hill (good), they placed swingman and former top prospect Roansy Contreras on waivers once again.

Contreras, once one of the centerpieces of the Jameson Taillon trade with the Pirates, has struggled since his rookie year breakthrough. While Pittsburgh and the Angels are the only MLB teams Contreras has yet to pitch for, to say he found his way around the league this offseason would be an understatement. After recovering to throw 52 innings of 4.33 ERA ball in Anaheim's bullpen last year, he found himself on waivers this offseason, selected by the Rangers in Dec. 19.

He was then chosen by the Reds, Orioles, Yankees, and now the O's again over the course of a month and a half, treading water as the 40th man on four different 40-man rosters this offseason. Depending on your perspective, he's either the "Who Want Me?" meme or the most desired man in baseball.

Yankees lose Roansy Contreras to Orioles in waiver claim, but keep Allan Winans at Triple-A