MLB Player News

The Mets announced Friday that Barnes joined the organization's MLB coaching staff as an assistant, signaling the end of his playing career, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

The 32-year-old reliever spent parts of three seasons in the big leagues from 2016 through 2018, all with the Blue Jays. Over 119 career appearances, Barnes posted a 4.33 ERA and 114:51 K:BB across 120.2 innings.

Neal signed a minor-league deal with the Rockies on Thursday, according to his representation at MSM Sports.

Neal has played the last three season in the Nippon Professional Baseball league with the Seibu Lions. He worked exclusively as a reliever and maintained a 4.85 ERA to go along with only 185 strikeouts across 337.2 innings. Neal will have the chance to earn a bullpen role in Colorado, though even if he sticks with the team he isn't likely to serve in a high-leverage role.

Powers signed a minor-league contract with the Tigers on Tuesday, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.

The 29-year-old righty has yet to make his major-league debut. He had a poor 5.40 ERA in 48.1 innings at the Triple-A level in the Diamondbacks' and Padres' systems last season, though his 28.4 percent strikeout rate was at least somewhat encouraging.

The Giants signed Ortiz to a minor-league contract Tuesday.

Ortiz spent the 2021 season in the Rangers organization, pitching exclusively at Triple-A Round Rock and submitting a 4.60 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 44:17 K:BB in 43 innings. The 26-year-old right-hander previously made three appearances at the MLB level with the Orioles between 2018 and 2019, giving up eight earned runs on 11 hits and eight walks in 5.2 innings.

Guzman's (elbow) agency announced Jan. 15 via its personal Instagram account that the right-hander signed a two-year, minor-league contract with the Giants.

Guzman will move on to the fourth organization of his career after he signed with the Astros as a teenager in 2014 and then was traded to the Yankees and Marlins in 2016 and 2017, respectively. The 26-year-old appeared in two games in the big leagues in 2021, but Miami outrighted him off its 40-man roster in late October after he had been sidelined for the preceding two months with a right elbow injury. The Giants' decision to bring Guzman aboard on a two-year deal could hint that he may have undergone an offseason surgery on the elbow, putting his availability for the start of the 2022 season in question. San Francisco is unlikely to provide much clarity on Guzman's situation until the lockout ends and manager Gabe Kapler is available to speak to the media again.

Weiss signed a minor-league contract with the Angels on Nov. 28.

After being cut loose by Cleveland last May, Weiss landed a minor-league deal with the Mariners and finished the campaign at Triple-A Tacoma, with whom he posted a 4.31 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in 39.2 innings. The 29-year-old right-hander, who last appeared in the big leagues in 2018 with the Reds, will likely report to Triple-A Salt Lake with his new organization.

Carasiti (elbow) signed a minor-league contract with the Giants on Thursday.

Carasiti joined the Red Sox on a minor-league deal last year but spent the entire season on the injured list after he underwent Tommy John surgery in March of 2020. It's not yet clear when he'll be ready to pitch, but it wouldn't be surprising to see him invited to major-league spring training in 2022 if he's healthy by then.

Ponce de Leon signed a minor-league contract with the Angels on Tuesday.

Ponce de Leon recorded a 3.31 ERA in 12 starts and 12 relief appearances across his first two MLB campaigns (2018 and 2019), but he's been unable to get back to that level since then. Over the last two seasons, he owns a 5.59 ERA in 66 innings of work. He could potentially enter the Angels' rotation at some point this year if he proves he's back to somewhere close to his previous form, but the fact that he was stuck settling for a minor-league deal indicates that teams don't have particularly high expectations for him.

Tonkin signed a minor-league contract with Atlanta on Jan. 11.

Tonkin has thrown 146.1 innings at the highest level, posting a 4.43 ERA. The last of those came back in 2017, however. Since then, he's spent time pitching in Japan, Mexico and the independent Atlantic League, where he recorded an 0.53 ERA and a 21:5 K:BB last season in 17 innings as a member of the Long Island Ducks.

Weber agreed to a minor-league contract with the Yankees on Friday, Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America reports.

Weber made four MLB appearances in 2021 between the Mariners, Red Sox and Brewers, and he'll now join the Yankees heading into 2022. He spent most of last season at the Triple-A level and posted a 4.18 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and 102:13 K:BB across 103.1 innings.