The St. Louis Cardinals signed outfielder Chad Huffman to a minor league contract on Monday morning, with no invite to Spring Training. The 27 year-old Huffman was immediately assigned to Triple-A Memphis. He batted .282 with six home runs and 33 RBIs in 67 games last season for Triple-A Columbus in the Cleveland Indians’ system. Huffman has not appeared in the Major Leagues since 2010, when he made his debut on the big stage with the New York Yankees.

Huffman was originally selected by San Diego in the 2nd round of the 2006 June draft and was the Padres’ #7 prospect entering the 2007 season. He also won the 2009 Triple-A Home Run Derby at Portland’s PGE Park while playing for the hometown Beavers.