Pittsburgh, PA – The Pittsburgh Pirates have signed first baseman Jeff Clement and pitcher Ryota Igarashi to minor league contracts with invitations to spring training.
Clement spent most of the 2011 campaign rehabbing from left knee surgery which took place September 22, 2010. He played 22 games with Triple-A Indianapolis last year and batted .271 after appearing in nine games for the Gulf Coast League Pirates.
The 28-year-old veteran hit .201 with seven homers and 12 runs batted in over 54 games with the Pirates in 2010. He spent two previous seasons in Seattle and is a lifetime .223 hitter with 14 homers in 129 games.
Igarashi spent the past two seasons with the New York Mets and last year posted a record of 4-1 with a 4.66 earned run average in 45 games. He has appeared in 79 games over the last two years and has a 5.74 ERA.
The 32-year-old right-hander pitched 10 seasons in the Japanese Central League before joining the Mets. He was a five-time Japanese League All-Star.
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