Astros Designate Ryan Weiss For Assignment, Select Raynel Delgado
The Astros have designated right-hander Ryan Weiss for assignment, as first reported by Matt Kawahara of the Houston Chronicle. His 40-man roster spot will go to infielder Raynel Delgado, whose promotion was first reported yesterday by Francys Romero. Weiss was not on Houston’s active roster, but the Astros already cleared a spot for Delgado on the 26-man by optioning Shay Whitcomb on Thursday.
Weiss, 29, pitched in the minor leagues for the Diamondbacks and Royals from 2018-23. Then, after brief stints in the independent Atlantic League and the Chinese Professional Baseball League, he joined the KBO’s Hanwha Eagles. His first season with the Eagles was solid (16 starts, 3.73 ERA), but his follow-up campaign was spectacular. The righty ranked third in the KBO with 178 2/3 innings, while his 2.87 ERA was nearly a run and a half better than the league average. Former major leaguers Cody Ponce and Drew Anderson had even stronger seasons with their KBO clubs – and thus signed bigger contracts in the offseason – but Weiss caught Houston’s eye. In December, the Astros signed him to a one-year, $2.6MM guarantee, with a club option for 2027.
On March 27, Weiss made his major league debut. In one inning of work, he gave up an earned run on two hits (including a home run) and a walk, though he struck out two. Over his next eight appearances, the pattern continued. Pitching in a bulk relief role, Weiss struck out more than a batter per inning, but long balls and free passes were a serious problem. By the time the Astros optioned him to Triple-A in early May, he had already given up eight home runs and 20 walks. The result was an 0-3 record and a 7.62 ERA. His 4.73 SIERA wasn’t as gruesome, but it was hard to ignore the fact that nearly 20% of the batters he faced came around to score, and almost half of the contact he allowed registered as hard-hit.
Unfortunately for Weiss, his struggles continued in the minors. In five starts for Triple-A Sugar Land, he pitched to an 8.41 ERA and a 6.61 FIP. Considering his poor performance and contract status, it’s not surprising the Astros DFA’d the right-hander. If another team thinks it can get more out of Weiss’s arm and puts in a claim, Houston would be off the hook for the rest of his salary. However, it’s more likely he passes through waivers and accepts an outright assignment to Sugar Land. He has previously been outrighted in his career, giving him the right to reject any future outright assignments, but due to his limited service time, rejecting an outright assignment would mean forfeiting the rest of the guaranteed money remaining on his contract.
Delgado, 26, will be making his MLB debut the first time he gets in a game. The Guardians drafted the versatile infielder in 2018, and he played in their system until he elected minor league free agency at the end of the 2024 campaign. He has since signed minor league contracts with the Brewers and Rays. It was Tampa Bay that traded him to Houston for cash considerations earlier this week. Delgado’s offensive numbers at Triple-A don’t jump off the page – he’s hitting .250 with a 77 wRC+ in 253 PA this season – but he steals bases, and he can play anywhere on the infield, including shortstop.
Blue Jays Activate Alejandro Kirk, Designate Tyler Heineman
To highlight a series of roster moves on Friday, the Blue Jays activated catcher Alejandro Kirk from the 60-day injured list and placed outfielder Dalton Varsho on the 10-day IL with left wrist inflammation, Hazel Mae of Sportsnet reports. The team also designated catcher Tyler Heineman for assignment and recalled outfielder Davis Schneider from Triple-A Buffalo. Right-handed reliever Yariel Rodriguez, who was designated for assignment on June 8, has cleared waivers and will head back to Buffalo.
The Blue Jays have gone almost the whole season without Kirk, who underwent surgery on a broken left thumb in early April. The two-time All-Star has played just five games this year, but the silver lining is that the Blue Jays saw Brandon Valenzuela emerge as a capable big leaguer in his absence.
Acquired from the Padres for infielder Will Wagner at last year’s trade deadline, Valenzuela has slashed .252/.333/.457 (121 wRC+) with seven home runs and 1.5 fWAR over 46 games and 145 plate appearances since he debuted April 4. The 25-year-old rookie has also drawn mostly excellent marks as a defender. While Valenzuela has thrown out a below-average 20.5 percent of base stealers, he has made up for it in other ways. He ranks in the 100th percentile in framing, according to Statcast, and has been credited with 5 DRS and 7 FRV.
Kirk’s return gives Toronto an enviable duo behind the plate, which will cost Heineman his roster spot. The 34-year-old journeyman is in his third stint with the Blue Jays, who claimed him off waivers from the Red Sox in September 2024. Heineman typically has not offered strong production as a hitter, but that was not the case during the Jays’ pennant-winning season last year. He batted a career-best .289/.361/.416 (120 wRC+) with three homers over 64 games and 174 trips to the plate.
Heineman was worth a personal-high 2.1 fWAR in 2025, but his offense has cratered in a 33-game, 87-plate appearance showing this year. Thanks in part to a career-low 2.3 percent walk rate (down from 6.9 in 2025), he is hitting .154/.205/.205 (15 wRC+) with one homer. To his credit, though, Heineman has received outstanding grades as a catcher. He is a 95th percentile framer who has thrown out a tremendous 36.3 percent of base stealers and accounted for 6 DRS and 7 FRV. That isn’t anything new for Heineman, who has caught over 31 percent of base thieves since he debuted with the Marlins in 2019.
Heineman, who has been outrighted in the past and has over three years of service time, will be able to reject an outright assignment if there isn’t a taker via trade or on waivers. That process could take up to a week. However, Heineman does not have enough service time (five-plus years) to keep his $1.24MM salary if he turns down an outright.
Varsho’s wrist injury has kept him out of the starting lineup since June 5, though he did come off the bench in three games between then and his IL placement. It is unclear how much time Varsho will miss, but his absence is a shot to Toronto’s lineup and a tough blow for a player enjoying a solid contract year. Varsho, who has drawn walks at a career-best 19.1 percent clip, has hit .256/.331/.408 (106 wRC+) with five long balls in 64 games and 236 PA. Known throughout his career for his plus defense, Varsho has been credited with one DRS, OAA and FRV apiece in center field this year. However, having dealt with rotator cuff problems that required surgery in 2024, his arm strength is only in the 18th percentile.
Varsho’s recovery from his procedure kept him from debuting until late April last year. He also spent time on the IL with a strained hamstring. The injuries limited him to 71 games. While Varsho was out, the Blue Jays primarily turned to Myles Straw in center field. Nathan Lukes was next in the pecking order. Both players are still in the fold, making them logical fill-ins for however long Varsho is out.
Rodriguez has been outrighted in the past, giving him the right to reject the assignment. But that isn’t going to happen, as Rodriguez lacks the service time to collect the rest of the money on the five-year, $32MM deal he signed in 2024. The 29-year-old Cuban pitched to 3.08 ERA in 73 innings in 2025, but he has struggled this season over a much smaller sample of work. The Jays designated Rodriguez after he threw 9 1/3 frames of 7.11 ERA ball with more walks (seven) than strikeouts (six).
Guardians Recall Daniel Espino For MLB Debut
2:01pm: The Guardians have officially announced the move. To make room for Espino, they optioned righty reliever Codi Heuer to Triple-A.
7:34am: The Guardians are expected to recall right-hander Daniel Espino for his MLB debut, reports Zack Meisel of The Athletic. Espino is already on the 40-man roster, so only a 26-man move will be needed.
It’s been a long journey to the big leagues for Espino. The 25-year-old has missed almost all of the past three seasons due to injuries. After not pitching at all in 2023 and 2024, Espino made it back on the mound for one Triple-A appearance last year.
Espino was among the top prospects in Cleveland’s organization after getting selected in the first round of the 2019 draft. MLB Pipeline ranked him at No. 5 in the system heading into the 2020 campaign. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs had Espino at seventh that year. The righty, along with Triston McKenzie and James Karinchak, was among the most promising arms in the organization at the time.
With the 2020 minor league season scrapped, Espino didn’t get a full year of pro ball until 2021. He was excellent in 20 starts split between Single-A and High-A. Espino recorded a massive 40.5% strikeout rate with a sub-4.00 ERA across 91 2/3 frames. He made the jump to Double-A and continued to punch out minor leaguers at a ridiculous clip. Espino posted a 51.5% strikeout rate in four starts with Akron.
The injury issues began for Espino in 2022. His campaign was cut short by knee and shoulder concerns. Despite tossing just 18 1/3 innings, Espino entered the 2023 season as the consensus top prospect in the Guardians’ system. He was heralded as one of the best young arms yet to debut in the majors. As he ramped up for the 2023 season, Espino felt renewed shoulder discomfort. The injury ultimately required surgery. Additional procedures on his right arm would cost Espino all of 2024 and most of 2025.
Espino has moved to a bullpen role this season. He’s made 22 appearances at Triple-A, all but one of which have come as a reliever. Espino has posted 18 2/3 innings of a 5.30 ERA with Columbus. He’s maintained strong strikeout numbers, whiffing Triple-A opponents at a 33.3% clip.
The Guardians opened the year with Rule 5 pick Peyton Pallette in a long-relief role. He’s since been returned to the White Sox. Espino hasn’t had an appearance longer than an inning with the Clippers, so he’s unlikely to fill that role. Cleveland’s high-leverage group is rock solid with Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, and Shawn Armstrong handling the later innings. Espino has the strikeout skills to join the mix, but he’ll likely begin in lower-leverage spots.
Photo courtesy of Samantha Madar of the Columbus Dispatch via Imagn Images
Padres Designate Bryce Johnson For Assignment
The Padres have designated outfielder Bryce Johnson for assignment, per a team announcement. Xander Bogaerts is being reinstated from the paternity list. The team’s 40-man roster stands at 39 with the move.
This may conclude Johnson’s second stint with San Diego, which first signed the former Giant to a minor league contract ahead of the 2024 season. He got into 47 games that year and hit just .206/.286/.238 (57 wRC+) with no home runs in 73 trips to the plate. Johnson opened 2025 in the Pirates organization, but the Padres brought him back in a mid-April trade for catcher Brett Sullivan. The move worked out better than expected for the Padres, as the switch-hitting Johnson easily posted career-best numbers. Across 55 games and 84 trips to the plate, he slashed .342/.383/.434. Although he only hit one homer, Johnson managed a 135 wRC+.
Last season’s unexpected outburst has not carried into 2026 for Johnson, one of many players who have slumped for the Padres this year. The Padres will enter Friday last in the majors in runs, all three triple-slash categories and wRC+. Johnson contributed to those woes, as he hit a meager .178/.229/.222 (30 wRC+) and struck out in a bloated 36.7 percent in 49 plate appearances before the Padres cut him.
While Johnson has only made 12 starts this year, he has gotten into 32 games and seen action at all three outfield positions. Johnson’s designation will lead to further instability in the grass for the Padres. They lost Ramón Laureano to what is likely a season-ending hip injury earlier this month, and they released Nick Castellanos a couple of days later. Samad Taylor and Jase Bowen have come up from the minors to join Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Gavin Sheets as outfield options. Tatis has gotten more action at second base than in his typical right field over the past month-plus, but that could change. The Padres are expected to give some keystone time to Will Wagner, which would allow Tatis to go back to the outfield, per Jeff Sanders of the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The 30-year-old Johnson will head into DFA limbo for up to a week. The Padres will have five days to find a trade partner for Johnson, which is possible given his above-average speed, defensive versatility and $805K salary. If a taker does not emerge, there is a 48-hour waiver process. Johnson has been outrighted in the past, which gives him the right to decline a minor league assignment in favor of free agency.
D-Backs Expected To Activate Jordan Lawlar
The Diamondbacks will activate Jordan Lawlar from the 60-day injured list for Friday’s series opener in Cincinnati, reports John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports and 98.7 FM. The Snakes will need to make corresponding active and 40-man roster moves tomorrow.
Lawlar returns from a two and a half month absence. He broke his right wrist when he was by a pitch from then-Atlanta righty Osvaldo Bido on April 3. Arizona almost immediately moved him to the 60-day IL. It was particularly brutal timing, as the injury occurred both on the same night that Lawlar hit his first MLB home run and when the D-Backs were already down 12-1.
The injury also interrupted Lawlar’s transition to the outfield. He’d made five starts in left field and one in center, his first regular season outfield work. The D-Backs have used him exclusively in the outfield during a brief minor league rehab assignment, confirming they’ll stick with that arrangement for the former top shortstop prospect.
Lawlar has still only managed 128 career plate appearances at the big league level. He spent most of the 2024 season on the minor league injured list after undergoing right thumb surgery. Last year, it was a Grade 1 hamstring strain in Triple-A that cost him almost two months between June and August.
Arizona’s outfield has been carried almost entirely by an MVP-caliber start from Corbin Carroll. Left and center field, question marks coming into the season, haven’t been good. They moved on from Alek Thomas last month, turning center field over to rookie Ryan Waldschmidt. The former supplemental first-rounder has hit .267 over his first 31 MLB games, but he has struck out 38 times in 114 plate appearances. Waldschmidt has fallen into a .214/.250/.286 slump with a team-high 17 punchouts over the last two weeks.
Tommy Troy, another rookie, has gotten the recent run in left field. Troy has shown solid plate discipline but without much impact, hitting .240/.345/.340 across his first 58 plate appearances. The D-Backs could get Lourdes Gurriel Jr. back from a hamstring strain within the next few weeks. He also struggled after making a quicker than expected return from ACL surgery. They just added Max Kepler for the MLB minimum, and his performance-enhancing drug suspension will be lifted in a couple weeks. Kepler isn’t eligible for postseason play, so even if he hits well, the D-Backs will need other outfielders to step up.
Assuming they expect James McCann back within the next month, Arizona doesn’t have any clear candidates for a move to the 60-day injured list. Out of options fourth outfielder Jorge Barrosa has hit .172/.241/.313 this season. If they want to keep him on the bench, they could designate someone else for assignment and option any of Waldschmidt, Troy or Adrian Del Castillo to Triple-A.
NPB’s Yokohama BayStars Sign Jerar Encarnacion
The Yokohama DeNA BayStars in Japan confirmed the signings of right-hander Osvaldo Bido and outfielder Jerar Encarnacion on Friday. MLBTR covered the Bido signing in the middle of May. Rumors out of Japan at the same time linked Encarnacion to the club, but neither deal became final until today.
Encarnacion, a client of A & F Sports Agency, opened the season with the Giants. He’s out of minor league options, so San Francisco was initially reluctant to cut him loose. He worked mostly as a bench bat but picked up a handful of starts in the corner outfield or at first base. He started the season slowly, hitting .176 without a home run across 35 plate appearances.
The 28-year-old has played parts of four big league seasons, the last three of which came with San Francisco. He’s a .211/.237/.362 hitter with 10 home runs in just under 300 trips to the plate. The meager on-base percentage hints at his very aggressive plate approach, but Encarnacion has big raw power. He hit 26 homers in Triple-A with the Marlins a few seasons ago and obliterated minor league pitching at a .352/.438/.616 clip in 2024 to earn an MLB look from the Giants.
It’s the kind of profile that tends to play better in NPB or the KBO, where the average pitcher quality is lower than in MLB. Encarnacion will surely do better financially with the BayStars than he would have had he bounced around on minor league contracts after San Francisco designated him for assignment last month.
Angels Re-Sign Taijuan Walker To Minor League Deal
The Angels announced they’ve re-signed Taijuan Walker to a minor league contract. He’s back on the mound for Triple-A Salt Lake tonight against the D-Backs’ affiliate.
Walker had opted out of a prior non-roster deal with the Halos on Monday. It’s common for players to re-sign on a new minor league contract after doing so. Testing the market gives them a few days to see whether a major league opportunity presents itself. If not, their previous team is usually happy to sign a new minor league deal. The player can try to negotiate more opt-out or upward mobility clauses or, in some cases, a higher salary.
The latter isn’t a factor for Walker, who is making $18MM from the Phillies this year either way. Philadelphia remains on the hook for that money after releasing him in April. The Angels would pay him the prorated $780K major league minimum if he spends any time on their MLB roster, and that would come off Philadelphia’s obligations.
Walker struggled for the majority of his three-plus seasons in Philadelphia. He allowed more than a run per inning across 22 2/3 frames this season, leading the Phillies to move on. The veteran righty spent a month on the free agent market before signing with the Angels in late May. He made a couple tune-up appearances in the Complex League before reporting to Salt Lake. He tossed 4 2/3 innings of two-run ball with three strikeouts and walks apiece against Colorado’s affiliate in his only Triple-A start.
The Angels have an opening for the final rotation spot behind José Soriano, Reid Detmers, Grayson Rodriguez and Walbert Ureña. They lost Jack Kochanowicz to Tommy John surgery earlier this week. Sam Aldegheri is getting the first look in the vacated role, as he’ll start tomorrow’s series opener against Shane McClanahan and the Rays.
Guardians Trade Nolan Jones To White Sox
The Guardians announced they’ve traded non-roster outfielder Nolan Jones and cash considerations to the White Sox. Chicago sends a $250K international bonus pool allotment to Cleveland in return.
Cleveland outrighted Jones off their 40-man roster at the end of Spring Training. He therefore won’t immediately occupy a roster spot for Chicago. The Sox announced that they’ve assigned him to Triple-A Charlotte. Jones has spent the entire season in the International League with Cleveland’s affiliate in Columbus.
The 28-year-old Jones appeared in the Majors each season from 2022-25. He had by far his best season with the Rockies in 2023, hitting .297/.389/.542 with 20 homers in a little over 400 plate appearances. Back problems limited him to half a season a year later. His numbers plummeted, as he hit only .227/.321/.320 with three homers in 79 games.
Colorado moved on after that injury-riddled season. The Rox dealt Jones back to Cleveland, the organization that had drafted him in 2016 and with which he made a brief debut six years later. He spent the entire season on the MLB roster, aside from a season-ending oblique strain in late September, but did not rebound offensively. Jones mustered only a .211/.296/.304 batting line while striking out in 28% of his 403 trips to the plate.
It came as a surprise that the Guardians tendered him an arbitration contract after a second consecutive season of below replacement level production. The sides hammered out a $2MM agreement early in the offseason. Jones had a rough camp and failed to make the team out of Spring Training. He cleared waivers and had an easy call to accept an assignment to Triple-A so as not to forfeit that salary.
Jones is amidst a nice year in the minors. He’s hitting .275/.385/.460 with eight longballs across 226 plate appearances. He’s striking out a little too often (24.3%) but hitting the ball hard and drawing walks at an excellent 14.2% rate. Jones has had that “three true outcomes” approach throughout his career.
The Guardians are paying an undisclosed portion of the roughly $1.15MM he’s owed through the end of the season. The White Sox weren’t going to take on that entire sum for a Triple-A player. Cleveland takes the opportunity to get some amount of salary relief for a player who had clearly been squeezed out of their plans. The Guardians haven’t gotten much from their outfield lately, but Jones was behind the 10 outfield options they have on their 40-man roster.
Chicago isn’t actually sending cash. They’re trading $250K in space from their hard-capped bonus pool for international amateurs, which means the Guardians can spend a little more of their own money to add to their farm system. The White Sox seemingly don’t intend to sign anyone else of note before the close of this period. They also packaged $250K in bonus space alongside Derek Hill in their afternoon trade with the Phillies to add a couple minor leaguers.
Jones gives them some upper minors depth for right field, which has been an issue this season. They’re in better shape now with Braden Montgomery up and Everson Pereira back from the injured list, but they don’t have much depth in the upper minors. Jones would be eligible for arbitration for a few years if the Sox call him up before the end of the season. He’d otherwise become a minor league free agent once the regular season concludes.
Astros To Select Raynel Delgado
The Astros will select infielder Raynel Delgado onto the major league roster for the start of tomorrow’s series in Kansas City, reports Francys Romero. Houston acquired him from the Rays in a minor league trade yesterday. The Astros initially assigned Delgado to Triple-A Sugar Land but have instead decided to jump him straight to the MLB level.
It’s the first big league call for the 26-year-old. A Havana native who moved to Florida as a child, Delgado was a sixth-rounder by Cleveland in 2018. He played in their system until 2024, topping out at Triple-A Columbus. He qualified for minor league free agency after that season when the Guardians elected not to add him to the 40-man roster.
The lefty-hitting Delgado spent 2025 in Triple-A on a minor league deal with Milwaukee. He hit .281/.363/.378 and didn’t get a major league look. Tampa Bay added him on a non-roster invitation early last offseason. Delgado struggled offensively with their top affiliate in Durham, hitting .250/.320/.362 with three home runs in 253 plate appearances.
Delgado has posted league average strikeout and walk rates at the Triple-A level for the past couple seasons. He has middling power but can steal a few bases and move around the infield. Delgado is more of a second/third base type than a true shortstop, but he has more than 500 minor league innings at all three positions.
Houston, which lost Carlos Correa for the season in May, is also down a pair of depth infielders in Nick Allen and Braden Shewmake. They’re operating without a great backup option at shortstop behind Jeremy Peña. Shay Whitcomb made his first MLB start at the position last night against the Angels. Whitcomb has logged almost 2000 career innings at shortstop in the minors but profiles more as a corner bat at the MLB level. That’s also true of Delgado, but he’ll offer a little more balance in a lineup that leans very heavily to the right side.
The Astros have a full 40-man roster. They’ll need to make corresponding active roster and 40-man moves tomorrow. Lance McCullers Jr., Bennett Sousa and LaMonte Wade Jr. all have uncertain return timelines from injury and could be options to move to the 60-day injured list.
Brewers Sign Lyon Richardson To Minor League Deal
The Brewers have signed right-hander Lyon Richardson to a minor league deal, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. He has been assigned to Triple-A Nashville. He elected free agency last week after being outrighted by the Reds.
Richardson, 26, was a second-round pick of the Reds back in 2018. Cincinnati initially developed him as a starter. He missed the entire 2022 season recovering from Tommy John surgery but the club still valued him highly enough to put him on the 40-man roster in November of that year to keep him out of the Rule 5 draft. He struggled with command in 2023 and 2024, so the Reds moved him to a primary relief role over time.
That hasn’t translated into any major league success yet. Richardson has thrown 56 2/3 innings in the big leagues, allowing 6.67 earned runs per nine. He has shown a bit more potential in the minors. Over 2025 and 2026, he has thrown 62 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 4.48 ERA. His 10.1% walk rate is higher than average but just barely. His 24.7% strikeout rate is a couple of ticks better than par. He has induced grounders on almost half the balls in play he has allowed.
The Reds shuttled Richardson up and down through the 2023 through 2025 seasons, exhausting his three option years. They passed him through waivers unclaimed in the most recent offseason. He was added back to the roster in May of this year as the club was dealing with a number of injuries. He was outrighted again shortly thereafter. Since that was his second outright, he had the right to elect free agency, which led to this deal with the Milwaukee.
For the Brewers, there’s no real risk on a minor league deal. Richardson has an intriguing arsenal. His four-seamer and sinker both average around 96 miles per hour. He complements those two with a slider, curveball and changeup. As a former second-round pick, there’s some pedigree there and the Brewers have a good reputation for helping pitchers become their best selves.
If he eventually gets back to the big leagues, he is out of options but has less than a year of service time, so he could be cheaply controlled for years to come. That will be a secondary concern, as he will first need to earn his way back to the show.
Photo courtesy of Katie Stratman, Imagn Images