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Yankees Select Kervin Castro

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The Yankees announced that they have selected right-hander Kervin Castro to their 40-man roster. The move prevents him from becoming a minor league free agent. They had several 40-man spaces available due to players recently becoming free agents.

New York took Castro in the second round of the Triple-A portion of the Rule 5 draft in 2023 from Houston. He missed the entire 2024 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Castro made 35 appearances for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this past season, pitching to a 1.53 ERA with a solid 27.4% strikeout rate. He earned four saves and five wins as a member of the RailRiders’ bullpen.

The 26-year-old Castro has pitched in pro ball for the past decade. He signed with San Francisco as a 16-year-old in 2015. He made his debut in Rookie ball the following year. Injuries cost Castro all of 2017 and most of 2018, but he put together a solid 2019 at Single-A. The right-hander made 14 starts, posting a 2.66 ERA across 67 2/3 innings. The strong season bumped Castro all the way to Triple-A in 2021 (the 2020 minor league season was canceled).

Castro, now operating strictly as a reliever, struck out 32.8% of batters with Triple-A Sacramento. Opponents hit just .195 over 44 innings against him. San Francisco called up Castro in the final weeks of the 2021 campaign. He excelled in his first taste of the highest level, blanking opponents across 10 appearances. His 13 1/3 scoreless innings came with nearly a strikeout per frame. Castro was back with the big-league club in April the following season, but he was pounded for five earned runs over 1 2/3 innings. He spent the next three months with Sacramento before being scooped up off waivers by the Cubs. Castro continued to struggle with Chicago, recording a 7.59 ERA across eight outings.

Detroit grabbed Castro as a minor league free agent following the 2022 campaign. He made 10 appearances with Triple-A Toledo before going down with an injury. Detroit let him go in August. Houston added Castro in minor league free agency, but he would only spend a couple of weeks in the organization.

Castro is still young and has shown enough flashes when healthy to be worth keeping in the organization. It might take an injury or two, but he could factor in as a multi-inning reliever with the Yankees at some point this season.

Pirates Make Several Roster Moves

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The Pirates have designated right-handers Dugan Darnell and Michael Darrell-Hicks for assignment, the team announced Thursday. Pittsburgh also reinstated catcher/first baseman Endy Rodriguez and utilitymen Ronny Simon and Emmanuel Valdez from the 60-day injured list.

Former top infield prospect Liover Peguero, who was placed on waivers earlier in the week, went unclaimed and has been assigned outright to Triple-A Indianapolis. Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports, however, that Peguero will reject the assignment to become a free agent. Meanwhile, Alex Stumpf of MLB.com reports that Pittsburgh will select the contract of minor league righty Ryan Harbin to its 40-man roster.

Darnell’s stay in the Pirates organization lasted only a week. He was claimed off waivers from the Rockies last week. He made his MLB debut in Colorado this year, tossing 11 2/3 innings and holding opponents to five runs on seven hits but with more walks (seven) than strikeouts (five). The 28-year-old undrafted free agent sits 94 mph with his heater and posted a 3.19 ERA, 28.8% strikeout rate and 8.7% walk rate in an extremely hitter-friendly Triple-A Pacific Coast League setting this season.

Darrell-Hicks, 28 next week, is another waiver claim and former undrafted free agent. The Bucs picked him up from the Angels back in June. He pitched 9 2/3 innings between the two clubs this year but was tagged for eight runs on 10 hits and four walks with eight strikeouts. He sits just under 95 mph with his heater. Darrell-Hicks posted outstanding numbers in the upper minors in 2024 (2.60 ERA, 26.4 K%, 5.0 BB% in 62 1/3 innings) but was rocked for an ERA north of 8.00 in Triple-A this season.

Peguero was once a touted prospect whom the Pirates acquired from the D-backs in exchange for Starling Marte He’s a former top-100 prospect who was once viewed as a possible shortstop of the future in Pittsburgh. In an all-too-common refrain for Pirates position prospects, however, his bat never came around. Peguero has seen action in four big league seasons but has mustered only a .227/.278/.368 slash line in 315 turns at the plate.

Peguero has also looked overmatched at the top minor league level. Outside of a late-2023 cameo in Triple-A where he smacked a pair of homers in 30 promising plate appearances, he’s produced well below-average numbers with the Pirates’ top affiliate in Indianapolis. He’s a .253/.317/.403 hitter in 888 plate appearances there, including a career-worst .247/.313/.375 showing in 75 games with Indy this season. Baseball America and other outlets have lauded his quality defensive tools but also noted a penchant for slipping into poor mechanical stretches that lead to far too many throwing errors.

The 24-year-old Harbin was a 17th-round pick in 2019. He was about to become a minor league free agent, but the Bucs didn’t want to lose him after he posted such gaudy strikeout numbers in the minors this season. Harbin’s 4.69 ERA isn’t much to look at, but that mark is skewed by an ugly 17 earned runs allowed in his first 13 1/3 innings of Triple-A work this season. He’d posted sharp numbers in High-A and Double-A, and even while struggling to keep runs off the board in Indianapolis, Harbin continued missing bats.

Overall, the 6’4″ Harbin fanned 32% of his opponents in the minors this year — albeit against a brutal 16% walk rate. He averaged better than 97 mph on his heater and missed bats in droves with his upper-80s slider. Harbin posted a very strong 14.1% swinging-strike rate on the season overall, including an eye-popping 17% mark in Double-A, where he fanned nearly 38% of his opponents. Now that he’s on the 40-man roster, Harbin will be in major league camp and compete for a spot in manager Don Kelly’s bullpen next spring.

Twins Outright Five Players

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The Twins announced Thursday that they’ve outrighted five players off the 40-man roster. Infielder Jose Miranda, lefties Genesis Cabrera and Anthony Misiewicz, and righties Michael Tonkin and Thomas Hatch all went unclaimed on waivers and have elected free agency. Minnesota has seven vacancies on its 40-man roster.

Miranda, 27, is the most notable of the bunch. He’s a former second-round pick and top-100 prospect who posted a strong debut effort with the 2022 Twins, hitting .268/.325/.426 (116 wRC+) with 15 homers and 25 doubles in 483 turns at the plate. That included an awful three-week start to his MLB career that saw him optioned back to Triple-A St. Paul. Upon returning to the majors, he mashed at a .286/.346/.461 clip in just over 400 plate appearances.

A shoulder injury ruined Miranda’s 2023 season, however. He opened the season at third base but hit just .211/.263/.303 before undergoing surgery. Miranda bounced back in 2024, slashing .284/.322/.441 (114 wRC+) in 121 big league games. Repeated back injuries shortened his season, however, and his 2025 campaign was a disaster. Miranda went 6-for-36 in the majors and spent the rest of the season in Triple-A, where he hit just .195/.272/.296 in 371 plate appearances.

There’s little doubting that Miranda is a talented hitter at his core. The question is whether he can rebound from the shoulder and back injuries that have dragged down his once-promising career. Given that he’s always been a bat-first player with a questionable glove at both infield corners, it’s imperative that he gets back on track in the batter’s box. He’ll be a depth option and moderate upside play for teams seeking help at the corners. Miranda has pronounced reverse splits in his career, so he’s not a great option for a team looking for a righty bat to help its attack against left-handed opponents.

The rest of today’s outrights/free agent elections were widely expected. Each of Cabrera, Misiewicz, Tonkin and Hatch were depth arms who were thrust into larger roles following the deadline fire sale. They’ll all be candidates for minor league deals this winter.

Cabrera nearly tied a major league record this year, pitching for four teams in one season. He’s a hard-throwing, command-challenged lefty reliever who’s bounced all over the league since 2019 and has a career 4.24 ERA with an 11% walk rate.

Misiewicz has pitched for six big league clubs and has a 4.86 ERA in 120 1/3 big league innings — only 4 2/3 of which came with the Twins this year. He had some success with the Mariners as a rookie in 2020 but has struggled to an ERA north of 5.00 since.

Tonkin was originally a Twins draftee. This season marked his third stint with the team. He’s pitched in parts of eight MLB seasons and also spent a year in Japan. In 329 2/3 innings, the soon-to-be 36-year-old righty has a 4.23 ERA.

Hatch, like Tonkin, is a righty with below-average velocity who’s bounced around MLB for several seasons and also spent a year in Japan. He pitched 34 innings with an ERA near 6.00 for the Twins in 2025 and now has a 5.24 earned run average in 103 frames at the MLB level. He just turned 31 in late September.

Rays Claim Jake Fraley; DFA Kameron Misner, Bob Seymour

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The Rays claimed outfielder Jake Fraley off waivers from the Braves, according to an announcement from Atlanta. The Braves evidently weren’t planning to tender him an arbitration contract and put him on waivers this week.

Tampa Bay also confirmed their previously reported option decisions involving Brandon Lowe, Pete Fairbanks and Taylor Walls. They added Forrest Whitley to the 40-man roster to prevent him from reaching minor league free agency while designating four players for assignment: first baseman Bob Seymour, pitchers Brian Van Belle and Nate Lavender, and outfielder Kameron Misner. Meanwhile, three players who DFA’d earlier this week — Caleb Boushley, Alex Faedo and Stuart Fairchild — cleared waivers and are electing minor league free agency.

Atlanta had claimed Fraley off waivers from the Reds in August. The lefty-hitting outfielder collected seven hits in 23 at-bats but suffered a season-ending oblique strain in the middle of September. Atlanta was well out of contention by that point, so the claim was largely about getting an early look to see if they wanted to retain Fraley in arbitration. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him for a $3.6MM salary if he’s tendered a contract for his last year of club control.

Fraley was a second-round pick by Tampa Bay back in 2016. They traded him to Seattle before he made his big league debut. Fraley has played parts of seven seasons in the majors, mostly with the Mariners and Reds, and is a career .261/.344/.432 hitter against right-handed pitching. He’s limited to the corners, where he’s a league average defender. This doesn’t guarantee he’ll stick with the Rays, who have a couple weeks to decide whether they want to tender him a contract. They could try to negotiate a deal lower than his projected salary before November 20 if they see him as a borderline non-tender candidate.

Whitley gets back onto the roster after being waived in early July. The former Houston first-round pick gave up 10 runs (eight earned) over five major league appearances with Tampa Bay. He has surrendered 22 runs in 15 1/3 career big league frames. Something appeared to click in Triple-A after the Rays demoted him, however. Whitley fired 55 1/3 innings of 2.60 ERA ball while striking out 30.4% of opponents with their top affiliate in Durham. He would’ve been a free agent if the Rays didn’t reselect his contract tonight. He’s out of options and could be on the roster bubble again next spring, but this suggests the Rays are open to the possibility of carrying him on the MLB roster.

The shuffling required a handful of cuts. Misner, 27, was a former supplemental first-round pick who has shown big physical tools with too much swing-and-miss. He has fanned in 34.1% of his career plate appearances and is a .203/.260/.325 hitter over 232 trips to the plate. Seymour, also 27, had a huge .263/.327/.553 showing with 30 homers in Durham. That got him an MLB opportunity at the end of the year, but the lefty batter struggled to a .205/.253/.282 line over his first 26 major league games.

Van Belle and Lavender were relatively new additions to the pitching staff who didn’t make much of an impact because of injury. Van Belle came over from the Reds in the Zack Littell trade. The 29-year-old made his first four MLB appearances before suffering a season-ending elbow injury.

Lavender was a Rule 5 pick out of the Mets’ system who never pitched with the Rays. He was rehabbing from an elbow procedure at the time he was taken in the Rule 5 and apparently didn’t progress as hoped. He collected a year of major league salary, though he surely wishes he’d had an opportunity to carve out a longer big league role. He’ll be placed on waivers and offered back to the Mets if he goes unclaimed.

Giants Claim Reiver Sanmartin, Justin Dean

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The Giants have claimed reliever Reiver Sanmartin and outfielder Justin Dean off waivers from the Reds and Dodgers, respectively. They opened a 40-man roster spot by designating righty Mason Black for assignment. The moves were relayed by Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area.

Sanmartin, 29, has pitched parts of four MLB campaigns with Cincinnati. He has only made one big league appearance over the past two seasons, tossing 1 2/3 frames while allowing an unearned run against the Blue Jays on September 2. The Colombian-born southpaw otherwise pitched the entire season with Cincinnati’s top farm team in Louisville. He had a strong year, working 67 1/3 innings of 2.67 ERA ball behind a 58.7% ground-ball rate.

Dean is a speed and defense center fielder who just won a World Series with Los Angeles. He got into 18 regular season games and made 13 more appearances in the postseason. They only let him bat twice — he went 0-2 with a strikeout — but clearly valued him as a depth piece. The 28-year-old Dean (29 next month) has a full slate of minor league options and is coming off a .289/.378/.431 showing with 27 steals in Triple-A.

The moves probably spell the end of Black’s time in San Francisco. He’s a former third-round pick who was viewed as one of the organization’s more talented pitching prospects when he was called up in 2024. Black struggled to a 6.44 ERA across 36 1/3 innings during his debut season. He only pitched once in the big leagues this year, instead struggling to a 5.81 earned run average over 30 appearances (24 starts) in Triple-A.

Black will be traded or placed on waivers within the next five days. There’s a decent chance another team takes a flier. He turns 26 next month and still has a minor league option. Black sits around 93 MPH as a starter but could be a speculative relief target. He has posted middling Triple-A numbers in consecutive seasons but fanned nearly a third of opposing hitters in Double-A back in 2023.

Reds Claim Roddery Muñoz

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The Reds announced a series of roster moves today. Right-hander Sam Benschoter has been sent outright to Triple-A Louisville. Right-hander Jose Franco has been selected to the roster. Right-hander Roddery Muñoz has been claimed off waivers from the Cardinals. The Reds also lost left-hander Reiver Sanmartin to the Giants via a waiver claim, which you can read more about here.

Muñoz, 26 in April, has a limited big league track record. He has thrown 93 2/3 innings between the Marlins and Cardinals with a 6.73 earned run average, 19.5% strikeout rate, 11.9% walk rate and 32.9% ground ball rate.

He has largely been a starter in his career. The Cards converted him to a relief role this year, mostly in the minors, with intriguing results. He tossed 57 2/3 innings over 38 Triple-A appearances with a 3.28 ERA. His 12.1% walk rate was high but he punched out 30.8% of batters faced and ot grounders on 47.8% of balls in play.

He is out of options, which presumably led the Cardinals to bump him off their roster. The Reds are intrigued enough that they have grabbed him off waivers. Perhaps he can hold a roster spot through the winter and compete for a bullpen job in Cincinnati next year. It’s also possible the Reds try to pass him through waivers later in the winter.

Franco, 25 in November, was an international signing out of Venezuela back in 2018. He has climbed the minor league ladder, also with some control issues. He tossed 110 innings in 2025, split between Double-A and Triple-A, with a 3.11 ERA. His 11.5% walk rate was on the high side but he struck out 25.2% of batters faced. Back in May, Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs ranked Franco the #24 prospect in the system, predicting a future in the bullpen.

Whatever his future is, the Reds want it to be in Cincinnati. Adding him to the 40-man roster today prevents him from becoming a minor league free agent. He has a full slate of options and can be kept in Triple-A until he earns a role with the big league squad.

Benschoter, 28 in March, was added to the club’s roster on July 1st. Starter Chase Burns had only lasted a third of inning on the prior day, meaning the bullpen had to cover almost the entire game. With the relief corps gassed, Benschoter was one of a couple of fresh arms who were brought up for extra coverage.

However, he was optioned to the minors a few days later without getting into a big league game. He was recalled in August but again didn’t pitch before being optioned, so he is therefore still looking to make his major league debut. He tossed 78 2/3 Triple-A innings this year with a 4.12 ERA, 20.9% strikeout rate, 6.7% walk rate and 49.1% ground ball rate.

Photo courtesy of Joe Puetz, Imagn Images

Dodgers Designate Tony Gonsolin For Assignment

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The Dodgers announced a series of roster moves today. MLBTR covered some of them earlier. In addition to those moves, the Dodgers have selected left-hander Robinson Ortiz to the roster, designated right-hander Tony Gonsolin for assignment and outrighted right-handed pitcher Michael Grove.

Gonsolin, 32 in May, is the biggest name here. Dating back to his 2019 debut, he has given the Dodgers 411 2/3 innings with a 3.34 earned run average, 23.2% strikeout rate and 8.9% walk rate. However, his health has been a big issue in recent years. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2023 and missed the entire 2024 season. He was back on the mound in 2025 but more elbow troubles emerged. He required internal brace and flexor repair surgery in August.

When the Dodgers announced that procedure, they gave an estimated timeline of eight to ten months. Even in the best-case scenario, he’s going to be sidelined into the beginning of next season. Given that he’s missed a lot of the past three seasons, it’s anyone’s guess what kind of contributions he can make in 2026.

The Dodgers could have retained Gonsolin via arbitration for one more season. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projected Gonsolin for a $5.4MM salary next year. Given the uncertainty, the Dodgers have apparently decided not to put that kind of money down in a bet on Gonsolin.

If some other club feels differently, the Dodgers could work a trade in the coming days. DFA limbo can last a week but the waiver process takes 48 hours, so that leaves the Dodgers five days for trade talks. If Gonsolin were to clear waivers, he would have the right to elect free agency.

Grove, 29 in December, tossed 149 1/3 innings for the Dodgers over the 2022 to 2024 seasons. In that time, he had a 5.48 ERA, 23.2% strikeout rate, 6.9% walk rate and 41.3% ground ball rate. Unfortunately, shoulder surgery in March wiped out his 2025 campaign. He crossed three years of service while spending this season on the injured list.

The Dodgers could have controlled him through 2028, with a projected salary of just $800K next year. However, given his uneven results and uncertain health status, they have moved on. He has enough service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency.

Ortiz, 26 in January, was an international signing out of the Dominican Republic back in 2017. Initially a starter, he has been pitching out of the bullpen in recent years. He has clear strikeout stuff but also control issues. He missed the 2022 and 2023 seasons due to injury. He only logged 11 innings in 2024.

Here in 2025, he tossed 59 1/3 innings across three different levels with a 2.73 ERA. He walked 13% of batters faced but also struck out opponents at a 28.3% clip and got grounders on 47.2% of balls in play. He appears to be a work in progress but the Dodgers see something they like. Adding him to the roster today prevents him from becoming a minor league free agent. He has a full slate of options and can be kept in the minors as depth as the club works on improving his command.

Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images

Mets Claim Ji Hwan Bae, Jose Castillo

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The Mets announced that they have claimed outfielder Ji Hwan Bae off waivers from the Pirates and left-hander José Castillo from the Orioles. They also announced that infielder Nick Madrigal has elected free agency. Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reported the Bae claim prior to the official announcement. It was reported earlier this week that the Bucs had put him on the wire.

Bae, 26, was once a notable prospect with the Pirates but he hasn’t panned out yet. He has slashed .223/.294/.293 in 514 plate appearances spread over four seasons. But he has some wheels, having stolen 37 bases. He has continued to hit in the minors, however. He has a combined .306/.390/.451 line and 126 wRC+ dating back to the start of 2022. That includes a 119 wRC+ and .292/.380/.424 line in Triple-A this year.

The Mets didn’t have a center field solution this year. Jose Siri was injured for most of the season. Tyrone Taylor struggled. They acquired Cedric Mullins at the deadline but he didn’t help. Bae still has an option, so he can push Taylor for the job in 2026 but he could also end up in Syracuse as depth.

Castillo, 30 in January, should be a familiar face to Mets fans. He was on and off the club’s roster throughout the 2025 season. He was lost off waivers to the Mariners and then Orioles in September but the Mets have grabbed him back today. The lefty tossed 32 big league innings on the year with a 3.94 earned run average. His 20.1% strikeout rate and 9.4% walk rate were a bit worse than par but his 54% ground ball rate was strong.

The lefty is eligible for arbitration, with MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projecting him for a $1.7MM salary next year. Presumably, the Mets are comfortable paying him something in that range. He’ll join a lefty relief mix that includes A.J. Minter, Brooks Raley and Richard Lovelady.

Madrigal signed a one-year, $1.35MM deal with the Mets last offseason. However, a left shoulder fracture required season-ending surgery back in February. He could have been retained for 2026 via arbitration but the Mets have cut him loose. It seems every other club also passed on the chance to grab him off waivers. He’ll look for his next opportunity, which will likely be a minor league deal.

Photo courtesy of Daniel Kucin Jr., Imagn Images

Tigers Claim Jack Little

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The Tigers announced that they have claimed right-hander Jack Little off waivers from the Pirates. It was reported earlier this week that the Pirates had put him on the wire. The Tigers had an open 40-man spot, though the roster is now full.

Little, 28 in January, was a fifth-round pick of the Dodgers in 2019. He worked his way up the minor league ladder and reached the big leagues in 2025. The Dodgers called him up in June, though he was mostly kept on optional assignment. He was designated for assignment in August and was claimed by the Pirates, who also kept him in the minors.

To this point, Little has just three big league innings under his belt, having allowed two earned runs. The Tigers are presumably putting more weight in his minor league track record. In 2024, he tossed 57 innings on the farm, split between Double-A and Triple-A. He had a combined earned run average of 3.79 while striking out 26.6% of batters faced and limiting walks to a 6.8% clip. His results in 2025 weren’t quite as strong. He logged 62 Triple-A innings with a 4.06 ERA, 20.2% strikeout rate and 8.4% walk rate.

Despite the numbers backing up this year, the Tigers will give him a roster spot for now. Little still has options and can be kept in Triple-A as depth. It’s also possible they try to pass him through waivers later in the winter to keep him as non-roster depth.

Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin, Oncea-Imagn Images

Angels Claim Cody Laweryson

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The Angels announced that they’ve claimed right-handed reliever Cody Laweryson off waivers from the Twins. That’ll bring the Halos’ 40-man roster count to 34 players while dropping the Twins to 38.

Laweryson, 28 next May, was a 14th-round pick by Minnesota back in 2019 and made his MLB debut this past season, tossing 7 2/3 innings and allowing one run late in the season. The 6’4″ righty punched out seven of 26 opponents and didn’t issue a walk. He averaged 93.2 mph on his four-seamer, mixing in a cutter and changeup to round out a three-pitch repertoire.

That marked the end of a quality all-around season for the Maine native. He split the remainder of the season between Double-A and Triple-A, working to a combined 2.86 ERA with a 24.6% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 46.3% ground-ball rate in 44 innings of minor league relief.

Laweryson was only added to the 40-man roster after Minnesota gutted its bullpen at this year’s trade deadline, shipping out five relievers for a series of prospects and controllable young big leaguers. Minnesota will likely trim several more names from the 40-man roster in the days ahead, as the bullpen for the final couple months was composed almost entirely of journeyman stopgaps to get through the end of the season.

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