The Orix Buffaloes have signed outfielder Brian Bogusevic and third baseman Brent Morel to one-year, $750,000 deals, the Pacific League team announced Friday.
The 31-year-old Bogusevic, the 24th player taken in the 2005 draft, played 22 games for the Philadelphia Phillies this year. The left-handed batter has 19 home runs in 321 career games in the majors. He has spent most of his time in right field.
Morel, 28, has played 220 major league games over the past six years and played for the Pittsburgh Pirates three times this past season. Morel has a .227 career batting average in the majors with a .273 on-base-percentage and 13 home runs in 662 at-bats.
"I'm hoping for an assured batting from Morel, and I'd like Bogusevic to hit in the cleanup (spot)," said Buffaloes general manager Ryuzo Setoyama.
The Buffaloes, who finished fifth in the PL this year, used 10 different players at third base, tying the PL's last-place club, the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, for the most at the position.