Taylorsville High School alum John Buck signs with Angels, to join Salt Lake Bees

Published: July 21, 2014, 4:50 p.m. MDT

Seattle Mariners catcher John Buck watches for the dugout during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels on Tuesday, April 1, 2014, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong) Jae C. Hong, AP

By Carter Williams

Taylorsville High School alum John Buck is back in Utah.

Buck signed a minor league deal Monday with the Los Angeles Angels, where he joined the Salt Lake Bees immediately. He was added to the Bees lineup Monday, batting sixth and playing designated hitter.

Alden Gonzalez, MLB.com's Angels beat writer, was the first to report Buck's signing.

#Angels have signed veteran catcher John Buck to a Minor League deal and assigned him to Triple-A. Was recently released by #Mariners.
— Alden González (@Alden_Gonzalez) July 21, 2014

Oddly, Buck isn't the only Taylorsville High product to play for the Bees this season. Pitcher Brandon Lyon started the season in Salt Lake but opted out of his contract in May.

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University of Utah alum C.J. Cron was also optioned to Salt Lake on Saturday.

Want more local ties? Not only is U of U alum C.J. Cron here, so is Taylorsville High grad John Buck who signed with the Angels today
— Salt Lake Bees (@SaltLakeBees) July 21, 2014

Buck's signing comes nearly a week after he was released by the Seattle Mariners. He had been designated for assignment by the Mariners on July 7.

The catcher was batting .226 this season, with one home run and six RBIs in 27 games. He has a career .234 batting average, with 134 home runs and 491 RBIs since making his major league debut in 2004. He has spent stints in the majors with Kansas City, Toronto, Miami, New York Mets, Pittsburgh and Seattle.

Buck was also an all-star with Toronto in 2010.

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