Jose Barrero Elects Free Agency

Infielder/outfielder Jose Barrero, who was recently designated for assignment by the Cardinals, went unclaimed on waivers and has rejected an outright assignment in favor of free agency, MLBTR has learned. Barrero will explore opportunities around the league but also has interest from at least one team in Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball and is weighing whether to pursue an overseas opportunity.

Barrero, 27, appeared in 22 games with the Cardinals but was only given 31 plate appearances. He hit just .138/.194/.276 in that scattershot playing time. This was his fifth season of big league work, but he’s yet to deliver on his former top prospect billing in the majors, with a .182/.238/.257 slash in 478 plate appearances between the Reds (who initially signed him out of Cuba) and Cardinals.

Although Barrero hasn’t yet found his stride in the majors, he has a more solid track record in Triple-A. He’s a career .247/.324/.475 hitter in parts of five seasons there, including a huge .299/.396/.517 showing in 101 plate appearances with the Cardinals’ Memphis affiliate in 2025. In 252 Triple-A games, Barrero has swatted 51 homers and gone 48-for-56 (86%) in stolen base attempts.

Barrero has primarily been a shortstop, logging more than 5100 innings at the position since turning pro, but he’s gradually begun to see time at other positions as well in recent years. He’s played just shy of 300 innings at second base and 94 innings at third base, but his most frequent non-shortstop position has been center field, where he’s now piled up 719 innings. There are some justifiable concerns about his hit tool — Barrero has fanned in 30% of his Triple-A plate appearances — but Barrero offers an enticing blend of power and speed as well as the ability to play multiple up-the-middle positions on the defensive end of things.