Outrighted To Triple-A: Slater, Blach, Brooks
Catching up on some players recently designated for assignment…
- The Mets outrighted outfielder Austin Slater to Triple-A Syracuse, as per Slater’s MLB.com profile page. There isn’t yet any word on whether or not Slater will accept the assignment, as Slater has the ability to elect free agency rather than report to Triple-A and remain in the Mets organization. Since he has more than five years of MLB service time, Slater can become a free agent while still keeping the $1MM he is guaranteed in 2026, as per the terms of the contract he signed with the Marlins just before the season began. Over 49 combined PA with Miami and New York, Slater has hit only .209/.286/.233 with just one extra-base hit.
- Ty Blach cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Cubs‘ Triple-A Iowa affiliate, according to the left-hander’s MLB.com profile page. Chicago selected Blach’s contract to the active roster last weekend but DFA’ed him two days later, after Blach tossed three shutout innings of relief work in the Cubs’ 9-3 loss to the Brewers on Monday. That cup of coffee represented Blach’s first bit of MLB work since 2024, and he now has the option of rejecting the outright assignment in favor of free agency or returning to Iowa. Given the ongoing injury woes on the Cubs’ pitching staff, Blach might prefer to stay put, as another call to the majors might come sooner rather than later.
- Aaron Brooks pitched for Triple-A Durham yesterday, indicating that the right-hander accepted his outright assignment to the Rays‘ top affiliate. Brooks was outrighted last Sunday and he had the ability to elect free agency, but it looks like the righty has opted to stay in Tampa’s organization. Like Blach, Brooks was also making his first MLB appearance since 2024 in his own one-game cameo back in the Show, though Brooks’ lone outing was much rockier. He was charged with three earned runs in one-third of an inning of work in the Rays’ 5-3 loss to the Blue Jays on May 13.
Rays Place Jake Fraley On 10-Day IL, Recall Carson Williams
The Rays announced a trio of moves this morning, including the news that outfielder Jake Fraley has been placed (retroactive to May 16) on the 10-day injured list due to a hernia. Shortstop Carson Williams was called up from Triple-A Durham to take Fraley’s spot on the 26-man roster. Tampa also noted that right-hander Aaron Brooks has been outrighted to Triple-A after clearing waivers.
Fraley was scratched from yesterday’s lineup, and Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reported yesterday that the outfielder was headed for an IL stint (and that Williams was the likely replacement). It isn’t known yet how long Fraley could be out of action, though Topkin floated a six-week estimate depending on the severity of the hernia.
The Rays claimed Fraley off the Braves’ waiver wire last November, then cut him loose at the non-tender deadline only to quickly re-sign the outfielder to a one-year, $3MM contract a week later. The left-handed hitting Fraley has been used almost exclusively in platoon duty in right field, though he has yet to get going at the plate, hitting .232/.300/.390 over 90 plate appearances.
Jonny DeLuca and Ryan Vilade have each been used as the right-handed hitting complement within the right field platoon. Tampa Bay could give more playing time to either outfielder while Fraley is sidelined, or stick to a platoon structure by using Richie Palacios (a lefty bat) in right field rather than his usual second base spot. Topkin believes the latter scenario is more likely, as evidenced by the call-up of Williams to add to the Rays’ infield depth.
Heralded as one of baseball’s top prospects at the time of his MLB debut last season, Williams is still a fixture on top-100 rankings except further down the lists heading into the 2026 campaign. Between 32 games in 2025 and seven games this season, Williams has hit only .164/.209/.320 over 131 PA against big league pitching. His numbers at Triple-A have also not stood out — Williams has hit .216/.318/.433 with 28 homers over 607 PA for Durham.
Williams has struck out in 203 of those 607 trips to the plate in Triple-A, while also whiffing 53 times in his 131 PA in the Show. While Williams is still over a month shy of his 23rd birthday, the alarming amount of swing-and-miss in his game may have already dropped his stock as a potential Rays building block. Defensively, Williams has primarily played shortstop but he has logged a handful of games as a second and third baseman, so he could get some action at the keystone if Palacios is indeed ticketed for more time in right field.
Brooks was signed to a minor league contract in April, and he was selected to the Rays’ roster last weekend for what ended up being a brief tenure with the club. The righty’s one appearance resulted in an 81.00 ERA over a third of an inning of work, as Brooks allowed a walkoff grand slam to Daulton Varsho in Wednesday’s 5-3 loss to the Blue Jays.
Tampa Bay designated Brooks for assignment two days ago, and now that Brooks has cleared waivers, the ball is in his court about his future with the club. Because Brooks has been outrighted in the past, he can reject this latest outright assignment in favor of free agency.
Rays Designate Aaron Brooks For Assignment
The Rays have designated right-hander Aaron Brooks for assignment and recalled fellow righty Trevor Martin from Triple-A Durham in a corresponding move, per Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. Their 40-man roster is now at 39 players.
Brooks, 36, signed with the Rays earlier this month after beginning the season in the Mexican League. His contract was selected to the major league roster last weekend, and he made his team debut Wednesday evening. It didn’t go well. The journeyman righty recorded only one out and was tagged for three earned runs on a pair of walks and a homer. That could end up representing the entirety of his time with the Rays; he’ll now be traded, placed on outright waivers or released within the next week. Brooks has been outrighted in the past and thus has the right to reject a minor league assignment if he passes through waivers unclaimed.
This now becomes the seventh season in which Brooks has logged at least one big league appearance. He has just under three total years of major league service time, during which he’s compiled 207 innings with a 6.48 ERA, a 15.2% strikeout rate and a 7% walk rate.
Though he hasn’t had much success in the majors, Brooks has pitched in parts of 10 Triple-A seasons and piled up more than 800 innings there. A 4.80 ERA doesn’t stand out, but he’s spent most of his Triple-A career pitching in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League and has had some successful seasons there. Brooks also spent two years pitching with the Korea Baseball Organization’s Kia Tigers, for whom he logged a 2.79 ERA in 229 1/3 innings from 2020-21.
Rays Select Aaron Brooks, Designate Justyn-Henry Malloy
The Rays announced that they have selected Aaron Brooks‘ contract from Triple-A Durham. Outfielder Justyn-Henry Malloy was designated for assignment to open up a 40-man roster spot for Brooks, and right-hander Mason Englert was optioned to Triple-A in the corresponding 26-man roster move.
Brooks had been playing with Caliente de Durango of the Mexican League until the Rays signed him to a minors contract a couple of weeks ago. After two appearances (and an 8.31 ERA over 8 2/3 innings) in Durham, Brooks now finds himself back in the majors, and looking for his first MLB action since he tossed 26 2/3 innings over five appearances for the Athletics in 2024.
The 36-year-old Brooks made his big league debut back in 2014, and he has since appeared in parts of six big league seasons with the Royals, A’s, Cardinals, and Orioles, posting a 6.36 ERA over 206 2/3 career innings. Brooks also spent two seasons with the Kia Tigers of the KBO League, in addition to his stint in Mexico and in the farm systems of several other MLB teams. In 2025, Brooks also started the season pitching with Durango before inking a minor league deal with the Athletics that didn’t result in any calls to the majors.
Englert tossed 46 pitches over 3 1/3 innings of relief in the Rays’ 2-0 loss to the Red Sox yesterday, so he’ll head to Triple-A to rest while Brooks brings a fresher arm to the Tampa bullpen. Brooks has mostly worked as a starter and is therefore capable of pitching multiple innings. It’s probably likely that this selection is just a cup of coffee for Brooks, and he’ll find himself in DFA limbo (Brooks is out of minor league options) before too long when the Rays need or want to make another roster move.
Malloy has now been designated twice in his career, and the first DFA back in December saw the Rays acquire the slugger in a trade after the Tigers removed him from their roster. Over 132 plate appearances in Durham, Malloy has hit only .128/.273/.266 with four home runs, in a stark dropoff from the very strong numbers Malloy posted with Detroit’s Triple-A affiliate. Even with his 2026 numbers factored in, Malloy has a career .270/.409/.456 slash line and 44 homers over 1341 PA against Triple-A pitching.
These numbers made Malloy an interesting prospect to watch in the Tigers’ system, but he hit a modest .209/.311/.346 over 357 PA in the majors during the 2024-25 seasons. Used as a corner outfielder and first baseman throughout his career, Malloy isn’t much of a defender and his best lineup fit might be as a DH, thus making him a tricky roster fit. Another team might be interested enough in Malloy’s Triple-A track record to take a flier on a waiver claim, but if not, Malloy will have to accept an outright assignment.
Players Entering Minor League Free Agency
Major League free agents became eligible to sign with other teams on Thursday, but the minor league free agent market has technically been open since season’s end. MLBTR has published several posts detailing players who had already elected to become minor free agents, but Baseball America’s Matt Eddy (multiple links) has the full account of all the minor league free agents that officially joined their big league counterparts on the open market on Thursday.
This list details only players who have played in the Major Leagues, and whose minor league free agency hasn’t already been covered on MLBTR in the last month.
Athletics: Aaron Brooks, Carlos Duran, CD Pelham, Bryan Lavastida, Nick Martini, Alejo Lopez
Braves: Ian Anderson, Davis Daniel, Enoli Paredes, Amos Willingham, Brian Moran, Jonathan Ornelas, Chandler Seagle, Matthew Batten, Conner Capel
Orioles: Jakson Reetz, Livan Soto, Thaddeus Ward
Red Sox: John Brebbia, Isaiah Campbell, Mark Kolozsvary, Chadwick Tromp, Seby Zavala, Trayce Thompson
Cubs: Yency Almonte, Zach Pop, Caleb Kilian, Austin Gomber, Forrest Wall, Billy Hamilton, Joe Ross, Tommy Romero, Antonio Santos, Tom Cosgrove, Dixon Machado, Nicky Lopez, Carlos Perez
White Sox: Elvis Peguero, Kyle Tyler, Vinny Capra, Chris Rodriguez, Caleb Freeman, Joe Perez, Owen White, Andre Lipcius
Reds: Tejay Antone, Alan Busenitz, Buck Farmer, Josh Staumont, P.J. Higgins, Eric Yang, Levi Jordan, Edwin Rios, Davis Wendzel, Evan Kravetz, Adam Plutko, Charlie Barnes, Alex Young
Guardians: Riley Pint, Tyler Naquin, Parker Mushinski
Rockies: Xzavion Curry, Sean Bouchard, Owen Miller, Karl Kauffmann,
Tigers: Kevin Newman, Brian Serven, Jordan Balazovic, Nick Margevicius, Blair Calvo
Astros: Jon Singleton, Joe Hudson, Kenedy Corona, Greg Jones, Matt Bowman, Luis Contreras, Tyler Ivey, John Rooney
Royals: John Gant, Spencer Turnbull, Bobby Dalbec, Diego Castillo, Geoff Hartlieb, Jordan Groshans, Nick Pratto, Isan Diaz, Stephen Nogosek, Nick Robertson, Joey Krehbiel, Noah Murdock, Ryan Hendrix
Angels: Shaun Anderson, Brandon Drury, Yolmer Sanchez, Ben Gamel, Evan White, Cavan Biggio, Logan Davidson, Travis Blankenhorn, Oscar Colas, Kelvin Caceres, Dakota Hudson, Chad Stevens, Angel Felipe, Jordan Holloway, Victor Gonzalez
Dodgers: Michael Grove, Luken Baker, Giovanny Gallegos, Kyle Funkhouser, Chris Okey, CJ Alexander, Zach Penrod
Marlins: Jack Winkler, Lane Ramsey
Brewers: Luis Urias, Oliver Dunn, Julian Merryweather, Daz Cameron, Drew Avans, Josh Maciejewski, Jared Oliva
Twins: Jose Miranda, Anthony Misiewicz, Jonah Bride, Thomas Hatch, Daniel Duarte, Connor Gillispie
Mets: Joey Meneses, Jose Azocar, Joe La Sorsa, Gilberto Celestino, Ty Adcock, Bryce Montes de Oca, Yacksel Rios, Oliver Ortega, Luis De Los Santos
Yankees: Kenta Maeda, Jeimer Candelario, Rob Brantly, Andrew Velazquez, Jose Rojas, Joel Kuhnel, Wilking Rodriguez
Phillies: Matt Manning, Adonis Medina, Lucas Sims, Jacob Waguespack, Phil Bickford, Rodolfo Castro, Oscar Mercado, Brewer Hicklen, Christian Arroyo, Payton Henry
Pirates: Brett Sullivan, Nick Solak, Nelson Velazquez, Beau Burrows, Ryder Ryan
Cardinals: Zach Plesac, Anthony Veneziano, Tyler Matzek, Zack Weiss, Drew Rom, Aaron Wilkerson
Padres: Eguy Rosario, Tim Locastro, Reiss Knehr, Nate Mondou
Giants: Sean Hjelle, Miguel Diaz, Max Stassi, Sam Huff, Cole Waites, Drew Ellis, Ethan Small
Mariners: Michael Fulmer, Casey Lawrence, Collin Snider, Jesse Hahn, Nick Anderson, Josh Fleming, Austin Shenton, Jacob Nottingham, Beau Taylor, Cade Marlowe, Jack Lopez, Michael Mariot, Hagen Danner
Rays: Cooper Hummel, Jonathan Hernandez, Jamie Westbrook, Tres Barrera
Rangers: Omar Narvaez, Cal Quantrill, Ty Blach, Alan Trejo, Joe Barlow, Cory Abbott, Michael Plassmeyer, Alex De Goti
Blue Jays: Eloy Jimenez, Buddy Kennedy, Joe Mantiply, Elieser Hernandez, Rene Pinto, Adam Kloffenstein
Nationals: Francisco Mejia, Juan Yepez, Joan Adon, CJ Stubbs, Parker Dunshee, Erick Mejia, Adrian Sampson, Delino DeShields
A’s Agree To Minor League Deals With Nick Martini, Aaron Brooks
The A’s have agreed to minor league deals with a pair of old friends, signing outfielder Nick Martini and righty Aaron Brooks, per the transaction log at MLB.com. Martini has been assigned to Triple-A and Brooks to Double-A.
Martini, 34, was recently designated for assignment by the Rockies and elected free agency after clearing waivers. He inked a minor league deal with Colorado over the winter and broke camp with the Rox after an excellent showing in spring training. However, Martini struggled greatly in 111 plate appearances, despite taking only five left-on-left turns at the plate and despite playing his home games at Coors Field. He slashed .225/.288/.294 during his time in purple — a tepid follow-up to a similarly rough showing with the 2024 Reds (.212/.272/.370 in 163 plate appearances).
Rough as Martini’s 2024-25 seasons have been, he’s only a season and a third removed from batting .264/.329/.583 in 79 plate appearances with Cincinnati. That was the final season of a limited but productive six-year stretch that saw the lefty-swinging walk machine bat .268/.362/.412 while drawing a free pass in 11.2% of his plate appearances. Martini regularly posts gaudy walk rates in the minors and has had little trouble frequenting the basepaths in Triple-A, as evidenced by his career .294/.399/.454 slash in parts of eight seasons at the top minor league level.
Brooks, 35, opened the 2025 season with el Caliente de Durango in the Mexican League. He’s posted an unsightly 5.92 ERA in 38 innings so far, although in the supercharged run-scoring environment of that league, a 5.92 mark is actually a slight bit better than the 5.99 league average. Brooks has fanned only 14.6% of his opponents but also touts a sharp 4.6% walk rate.
Brooks pitched for the A’s just last season — his third stint with the A’s dating all the way back to the time he was traded to Oakland alongside Sean Manaea in a deal that shipped Ben Zobrist to the eventual 2015 World Series champion Royals. Last year, Brooks tossed 26 2/3 big league innings and logged a 5.06 ERA with a similarly poor strikeout rate (10.1%) and strong command (6.7% walk rate).
If he ends up back in the majors, Brooks will be in his seventh season with at least some big league time. He’s totaled 206 2/3 innings in the majors and logged a 6.36 ERA, a 15.3% strikeout rate and a 6.8% walk rate between the Royals, A’s, Orioles and Cardinals. In addition to that MLB work, Brooks enjoyed a strong two-year run in the Korea Baseball Organization and has pitched a 4.65 ERA in 720 Triple-A innings.
The A’s have five starting pitchers on the injured list and have seen healthy rotation candidates like Osvaldo Bido and Joey Estes pitch poorly in 2025. Brooks is hardly a high-ceiling addition, but he’ll give them some more depth. On the position-player side of things, the A’s have Miguel Andujar on the IL, have already passed Seth Brown through waivers (though he’s reportedly coming back today), and recently optioned a struggling JJ Bleday to Triple-A (though he’s since been recalled). Martini gives them an experienced option to stash in Triple-A.
11 Players Elect Free Agency
As the offseason nears, a number of players elect minor league free agency each week. These players are separate from six-year MLB free agents, who’ll reach the open market five days after the conclusion of the World Series. Eligible minor leaguers can begin electing free agency as soon as the regular season wraps up. These players were all outrighted off a team’s 40-man roster during the year and have the requisite service time and/or multiple career outrights necessary to reach free agency since they weren’t added back to teams’ rosters.
Electing free agency is the anticipated outcome for these players. There’ll surely be more to test the market in the coming weeks. We’ll offer periodic updates at MLBTR. These transactions are all reflected on the MiLB.com log.
Catchers
- Seby Zavala (Mariners)
Infielders
- Keston Hiura (Angels)
Outfielders
- Edward Olivares (Pirates)
Pitchers
- Dan Altavilla (Royals)
- Matt Andriese (Marlins)
- Aaron Brooks (Athletics)
- Justin Bruihl (Pirates)
- Paolo Espino (Blue Jays)
- Anthony Gose (Guardians)
- Geoff Hartlieb (Rockies)
- Jake Woodford (Pirates)
Athletics Outright Aaron Brooks
June 27: Brooks was outrighted again, per the transaction log at MLB.com. He has the right to elect free agency, but it wouldn’t be a surprise if he reports back to Las Vegas and awaits another opportunity with the A’s.
June 25: The Athletics announced that they have recalled left-hander Jack O’Loughlin, with right-hander Aaron Brooks designated for assignment in a corresponding move. The club’s 40-man roster count drops to 39.
Brooks, 34, signed a minor league deal with the A’s in the offseason and has twice been selected to their roster. The second such selection just occurred on Sunday and Brooks went on to perform some mop-up duty for the club last night. Luis Medina started the game but was removed after recording just nine outs. Brooks then came in and covered five frames, tossing 65 pitches and letting the rest of the bullpen have a night off.
That effective yeoman’s work was likely an ironic contributor to him losing his roster spot, as he surely wasn’t going to be available for a few days. Since he’s out of options, the club had to remove him from the 40-man roster in order to get a fresh arm into the bullpen.
The A’s will now have a week to trade Brooks or pass him through waivers. The last time he lost his roster spot, earlier this month, he cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A Las Vegas. It’s possible that the same scenario plays out again in the days to come. He has an earned run average of 5.06 over his five appearances in the majors this year, as well as a 4.30 ERA in ten appearances for the Aviators.
A’s Select Aaron Brooks
4:02PM: Jimenez has a Grade 2 oblique strain and is expected to miss 6-8 weeks, MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos writes (X link).
11:51AM: The A’s announced this morning that they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Aaron Brooks. Brooks will take the place of righty Dany Jimenez on the active roster, who the club placed on the 15-day injured list with a left oblique strain.
Brooks, 34, signed with the A’s on a minor league deal over the winter and was called up last month to help fill out the club’s rotation mix amid a number of injuries to key veterans such as Alex Wood, Ross Stripling, and Paul Blackburn. That first stint in the majors saw the righty post a 5.82 ERA with a 5.59 FIP in 21 2/3 innings of work across four starts with a strikeout rate of just 10% against a 6% walk rate. Brooks found himself DFA’d earlier this month when right-hander Luis Medina was activated from the 60-day IL, but remained with the club after being assigned outright to Triple-A and will now get another opportunity in the majors, albeit this time in a long relief role.
Despite his lackluster results earlier this year, it’s at least feasible to imagine the righty showing off a stronger performance in his second stint in the big leagues this season. After all, he’s a veteran of six major league seasons who has compiled 56 appearances and 32 starts in the majors during that time as a back-end starter and long reliever who enjoyed some success overseas while pitching in the Korea Baseball Organization from 2020-21. He’s also posted a solid 4.30 ERA in 52 1/3 innings of work at the Triple-A level this year despite the inflated offensive environment of the Pacific Coast League.
Brooks will take the roster spot of Jimenez, who has been a decent middle reliever this season for the club this season. In 23 2/3 innings of work, Jimenez has pitched to a solid 3.04 ERA with a decent 20% strikeout rate. Those solid results have come in spite of extreme wildness, however. The right-hander has walked an eye-popping 17.1% of batters faced this year, a trend consistent with the righty’s career numbers. Since making his A’s debut back in 2022, Jimenez has posted a solid 3.32 ERA (118 ERA+) but has never posted a walk rate below 12.4% in a season, while walking 14.5% of batters faced overall while in an Oakland uniform.
Now sidelined for the foreseeable future with an oblique strain, Jimenez figures to work his way back into the big league relief mix once healthy. With pieces like Lucas Erceg, T.J. McFarland, and Austin Adams likely to attract interest from clubs in need of bullpen help this summer, it’s possible that the A’s will have plenty of room for Jimenez if he returns following the trade deadline even in the likely event that the club holds onto superstar closer Mason Miller.
A’s Select Vinny Nittoli
June 4: The A’s made it official today, selecting Nittoli’s contract today. They also reinstated left-hander Sean Newcomb from the 60-day injured list. One spot was opened by righty Michael Kelly being placed on the suspended list today, one of many players receiving punishments for gambling, as reported earlier today. A second active roster spot was opened by left-hander Brady Basso being optioned. To open another 40-man roster spot, right-hander Paul Blackburn was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Additionally, right-hander Aaron Brooks was outrighted to Las Vegas after being designated for assignment on the weekend.
Blackburn will be ineligible to return until 60 days from his initial IL placement, which was May 11. That means the club doesn’t expect him back in the next month. He has yet to begin a rehab assignment after suffering a stress reaction of the fifth metatarsal of his right foot.
June 3: A’s reliever Vinny Nittoli is joining the team before tomorrow’s series opener with the Mariners, reports Jessica Kleinschmidt (X link). Assuming he’s in line for a call-up, the A’s will need to select his contract to add him to the MLB roster.
Nittoli, 33, landed with Oakland on an offseason minor league deal. The 6’1″ righty struck out 10 hitters in 5 2/3 innings in Spring Training. He has continued to miss plenty of bats for Triple-A Las Vegas. Over 23 1/3 innings in the Pacific Coast League, Nittoli has fanned 36% of opposing hitters. While he has also issued walks at a higher than average rate (11%), the huge strikeout tally has allowed the Xavier product to post a 2.70 ERA in an extremely hitter-friendly setting.
Since making his MLB debut with the Mariners in 2021, Nittoli has logged 6 2/3 innings with three different teams. He has appeared at the big league level in each of the last three seasons, but last year’s three games with the Mets represented a personal high. Nittoli has five years of Triple-A experience, turning in a 4.73 ERA in 177 innings at that level. He has punched out more than 29% of his career Triple-A opponents.
Oakland lost setup man Lucas Erceg to the injured list over the weekend, subtracting one of their higher-octane arms from the relief corps. The A’s have plenty of opportunity available in the middle innings leading up to star closer Mason Miller and high-leverage righty Austin Adams. Their 40-man roster is at capacity and they don’t have any obvious candidates for a move to the 60-day injured list. That could require them to designate a player for assignment if they officially call Nittoli up tomorrow.