Braves Sign Former Arizona Wildcats Star Infielder

The Atlanta Braves added a fourth player on a minor league contract this month.

Atlanta Braves manager Brian Snitker / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Braves have been busy adding depth to their organization this month. On November 15, they signed another infielder to a minor league contract -- second baseman Kobe Kato.

The Braves announced the signing on their official roster transaction page on MLB.com.

Baseball Reference lists Kato as a second baseman, third baseman and left fielder. At Arizona in the Pac-12, he hit .350 with a .929 OPS, 34 RBI and 58 runs in 226 at-bats across 63 games during 2021.

Over the past two seasons, he's played at various minor league levels in the Houston Astros and Seattle Mariners organizations. He played 16 games at Triple-A Tacoma this past season.

Kato has never appeared in an MLB game.

In the 2021 MLB amateur draft, the Astros selected Kato in the 13th round. He finished his college career as a .344 hitter with 22 extra-base hits in 93 games.

Kato made his first minor league appearance for the Astros at Single-A in 2021. He hit .252 with a .727 OPS across Single-A and High-A during 2023.

In the 69 plate appearances he made at Triple-A this past season, Kato performed well, recording a slash line of .356/.435/.492. But he mostly played for the York Revolution in the Independent League during 2024.

Over 64 games with York, he hit .255 with 23 extra-base hits.

Kato began the 2024 season with Double-A Corpus Christi, an Astros affiliate. Corpus Christi released Kato about a week into the season.

On July 12, Kato signed with the Mariners organization. He played in the Independent League for roughly three months after his release from the Astros and before signing with the Mariners.

Kato became a free agent again on Nov. 4. A day after his signing, the Braves assigned Kato to Double-A Mississippi.

Kato doesn't appear to possess much power. He has a career minor league slugging percentage of .359. But it will be interesting to see if he receives a chance to show what he's capable of during Spring Training.

In addition to Kato, the Braves have signed right-handed pitcher Enoli Paredes, third baseman Charles Leblanc and catcher Yohel Pozo to minor league contracts in November.