Infielder Omar Quintanilla is returning to the Mets on a minor league deal with a spring-training invite, according to Adam Rubin of ESPN NewYork.
The Mets traded Quintanilla to the Baltimore Orioles for cash last July 20 after a decent job as a backup middle infielder for the team.
The 31-year old hit a combined .243 with four homers and 16 RBIs in 169 at-bats for the Mets and Orioles in 2012.
He will likely battle with Brandon Hicks for the backup middle infield role out of spring training. Hicks was acquired from the Oakland Athletics for cash last month.
The Mets still remain the lone team yet to sign a free agent to a major league deal this offseason. The last player the Mets signed to a major league contract was infielder Ronny Cedeno almost a year ago on January 11, 2012.
