MONTREAL – The Montreal Expos today notified catcher Einar Diaz that-per his contract-they will decline the club option to play for the Expos in 2005. The club also outrighted outfielder Matt Cepicky to Triple-A Edmonton. Assistant General Manager/Director of Baseball Administration Tony Siegle made the announcements. Diaz, 31, batted .223 with one home run and 11 RBI in 55 games (37 starts) for the Expos this season. On April 3, 2004, Diaz was acquired from Texas with right-handed pitcher Justin Echols and cash considerations in exchange for catcher/infielder Josh McKinley and right-handed pitcher Chris Young. Matt Cepicky, 26, hit .217 (13-for-60) with one home run and three RBI in 32 games (10 starts) for Montreal in 2004. He spent a majority of the 2004 campaign with Edmonton, where he batted .266 with 15 home runs and 67 RBI in
82 Pacific Coast League contests.
