Coronado graduate Ivan Meldendez returned to his hometown hoping to shake some early-season struggles and find his bat. He leaves looking for a job.
After two solid games for the Reno Aces, when he drove in five runs in two homecoming games at Southwest University Park against the El Paso Chihuahuas, he was released by the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Melendez is hitting .222 after going two-for-seven with five RBIs in the first two games in El Paso. He is 10-for-45 on the season, and Melendez began the season on the “developmental list,” which is for injured players. He returned April 8.
Melendez, a 2018 Coronado graduate, was scheduled to meet El Paso media on Thursday at 2 p.m., but by then, he was reported to be on a plane to Amarillo to join the Double-A Sod Poodles. Instead, per reports, he was released and hit the free agent market.
Melendez had been with the Diamondbacks organization since 2022, when he was drafted with the 43rd overall pick in the second round of the MLB draft following a season with the University of Texas, where he was the NCAA player of the year.
Bret Bloomquist can be reached at bbloomquist@elpasotimes.com; @Bretbloomquist on X.
This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Ivan Melendez released by Diamondbacks after homecoming
Reporting by Bret Bloomquist, El Paso Times / El Paso Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
