Nationals' Franklin Barreto: Joins Washington in MiLB deal
Rotowire
Barreto agreed to a minor-league contract with the Nationals on Thursday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
Barreto joined the Astros on a minors deal for 2022 and had a .162/.259/.274 slash line in 73 games at the Triple-A level before he was released in August. The 26-year-old will need a significant turnaround to have a chance of seeing the majors in 2023.
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Franklin Barreto: Parts ways with Houston
Rotowire
Barreto was released by the Astros on Tuesday, Brian McTaggart of MLB.com reports.
Barreto inked a minor-league deal with the Astros during the offseason and has been let go after posting a .162/.259/.274 slash line in 73 games at Triple-A Sugar Land. The 26-year-old has similarly struggled in the majors with a .549 OPS in 101 career games.
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Astros' Franklin Barreto: Reassigned to minor-league camp
Rotowire
Barreto was reassigned to minor-league camp Saturday, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
Barreto joined the Astros on a minor-league deal in late March, and he'll begin the 2022 campaign at Triple-A Sugar Land. Across three appearances this spring, the 26-year-old went 2-for-5 with a home run and two RBI.
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Astros' Franklin Barreto: Making spring, Houston debuts
Rotowire
Barreto (elbow) will start at second base and bat ninth Monday in the Astros' Grapefruit League game against the Cardinals, Chandler Rome of the Houston Chronicle reports.
He'll be making both his spring and Astros debuts after he agreed to a minor-league deal with Houston last week. Once a highly-touted prospect, Barreto's star has dimmed in light of his poor body of work at the big-league level between stops with the Athletics and Angels from 2017 through 2020. He missed the entire 2021 season due to an elbow injury that eventually required Tommy John surgery, but his inclusion in the lineup Monday at a middle-infield position implies that he's back to full health. Barreto is expected to open the season with the Astros' Triple-A affiliate in Sugar Land.
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Astros' Franklin Barreto: Joins Astros on MiLB deal
Rotowire
Barreto (elbow) signed a minor-league contract with the Astros on Tuesday that includes an invite to big-league camp, Martin Gallegos of MLB.com reports.
Barreto elected free agency after being outrighted off the Angels' 40-man roster in October, but he's now latched on with a new team. Once a highly-regarded prospect, the 26-year-old has been unable to make much of an impact since making his big-league debut in 2017, and he went 2-for-27 during his brief stint in the majors last season.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Becomes free agent
Rotowire
Barreto (elbow) elected free agency after clearing waivers last week, Taylor Blake Ward of HomePlateView.com reports.
A once-acclaimed prospect in the Blue Jays system who later became the main piece in the trade sent Josh Donaldson from Oakland to Toronto, Barreto has not only faltered across various stints at the big-league level (45 wRC+ in 237 career plate appearances), but he's also struggled to stay healthy in recent years. He didn't see any action in affiliated ball at all in 2021, as he battled right elbow inflammation in spring training that later required Tommy John surgery in May. Though he'll face a shorter recovery timeline than a pitcher, Barreto will still likely face at least some restrictions heading into next spring, which may force him to settle for a minor-league deal this winter. Still just 25 years old, Barreto shouldn't be written off entirely from making a big-league impact, but he'll first need to prove healthy and effective at the Triple-A level before getting another look.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Outrighted off roster
Rotowire
Barreto (elbow) cleared waivers and was outrighted off the Angels' 40-man roster Friday, Sam Blum of The Athletic reports.
Barreto underwent Tommy John surgery back in May and was given a recovery timeline of 10-to-12 months, meaning there's no guarantee he's ready for the start of the regular season. Between that procedure and the fact that he owns a career .175/.207/.342 slash line in 237 major-league plate appearances, it's no surprise to see him pass through waivers unclaimed.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Set for Tommy John surgery
Rotowire
Barretto will miss 10-to-12 months following Tommy John surgery, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
Barreto was in the mix for a bench role this spring but was shut down with elbow inflammation. He'll now miss the entirety of this season and potentially the start of next year as well. This timeline means he's unlikely to be ready at the start of camp and may not be ready for the start of the regular season.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Lands on 60-day IL
Rotowire
Barreto (elbow) was placed on the 60-day injured list Wednesday.
The 25-year-old was shut down for 4-to-6 weeks March 22 with right elbow inflammation, and the move to the 60-day IL will guarantee he misses the first two months of the season. Barreto was competing for a utility role in camp and likely won't return until June.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Shut down with elbow inflammation
Rotowire
Barreto will be shut down for four to six weeks due to elbow inflammation, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.
Barreto had been pushing to win a utility role but now won't get to fill that role in the early part of the season. He won't start building back up until late April at the earliest and then will still need a fair amount of time before he's ready for game action. Luis Rengifo now looks likely to break camp with the Angels in a bench spot.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Pushing for roster spot
Rotowire
Barreto is competing for a utility role this spring, per Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com, and has helped his candidacy with a .353/.421/.529 slash line in 11 Cactus League contests.
Barreto is out of minor-league options, which could give the Angels extra motivation to include him on the Opening Day roster. The fourth-year pro struggled mightily last season, collecting only two hits and striking out 15 times in 27 at-bats, but has swung a hot stick this spring. However, Barreto has struck out seven times in his 17 spring at-bats, so he doesn't appear to be past the contact issues that have dogged him throughout his professional career.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Cleared for baseball activities
Rotowire
Barreto (shoulder) was fully cleared for baseball activities Friday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Barreto's 2020 campaign ended in early September due to a shoulder issue which eventually required surgery. He should have enough time to build up for Opening Day, though it's far from guaranteed he plays a significant role for the Angels this season. In 237 big-league plate appearances across the last four seasons, he's struck out 42.2 percent of the time while hitting just .175/.207/.342.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Looking good for spring training
Rotowire
Angels general manager Perry Minasian said Wednesday that Barreto (shoulder) appears on track to be ready for the start of spring training, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Los Angeles acquired Barreto in a trade with the Athletics on Aug. 28, but he ended up appearing in only six games for his new club before requiring season-ending left shoulder surgery. The 24-year-old has seemingly progressed well in his recovery this offseason, putting him in line to enter the spring with few restrictions, if any. Barreto will likely be competing in camp with a slew of players for a utility role on the Opening Day roster.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Heading for shoulder surgery
Rotowire
Barreto will undergo shoulder surgery Tuesday, Jeff Fletcher of The Orange County Register reports.
The 24-year-old landed on the injured list in early September with a left shoulder subluxation (partial dislocation), and he'll now go under the knife to address the injury. Barreto is out for the season and will receive a more specific recovery timeline after the surgery.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Leaves game with injury
Rotowire
Barreto exited Sunday's game with an apparent shoulder injury, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Barreto suffered the injury while stealing second base in the bottom of the sixth inning and left the game immediately afterward while clutching his left shoulder. It's unclear whether the injury will force Barreto to miss any additional time.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Slated to play all over field
Rotowire
Angels manager Joe Maddon indicated Wednesday that Barreto will play "literally everywhere" throughout the remainder of the season, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Maddon was likely exaggerating in stating that Barreto will play all nine positions on the field, but given the Angels' current place in the standings -- they sit 11.5 games behind first place in the AL West and eight games out of a wild card spot -- it makes sense that they will use the final month of the campaign to evaluate players. Barreto has played exclusively at second base, shortstop and third base during his time in the majors, but he did log nine games in center field and two games in left at the Triple-A level last season.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Joining active roster
Rotowire
Barretto cleared intake protocols and was activated from the COVID-19 injured list Wednesday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
The 24-year-old was acquired by the Angels from the A's on Friday, but he had yet to join his new team while going through the COVID-19 intake protocols. Barreto had only 10 plate appearances this season prior to the trade, and he's expected to fill a utility role with his new team.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Going through intake protocols
Rotowire
Barreto was placed on the COVID-19 injured list Saturday while he goes through the intake protocols.
The 24-year-old was acquired by the Angels from the A's in exchange for Tommy La Stella on Friday, but he'll need to wait at least another day before being declared game ready. Luis Rengifo was recalled from the alternate training site to provide infield depth.
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Angels' Franklin Barreto: Headed to Angels
Rotowire
Barreto was traded from the Athletics to the Angels in exchange for Tommy La Stella on Friday, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
Barreto has seen minimal playing time for the Athletics to begin the season as he's gone hitless with seven strikeouts in 10 at-bats. He's scored five times as a pinch runner. He could play a similar role to begin his time with the Angels as he'll likely play behind David Fletcher at second base.
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Athletics' Franklin Barreto: Minimal role thus far
Rotowire
Barreto, who was expected to be part of a platoon at second base with Tony Kemp prior to the start of the season, has logged just four plate appearances over four appearances to date, none of them starts.
Prior to the Athletics' July 24 season opener, manager Bob Melvin announced Chad Pinder would draw the start against the Angels for that game, but there was no indication at the time Barreto would essentially be frozen out by the utility player for the right-handed side of the platoon at the keystone. However, that's exactly what's come to pass, with Barreto only being used as a pinch hitter, pinch runner or defensive replacement thus far. The 24-year-old did score his second run of the season in Thursday's win over the Rangers when Sean Murphy singled him home, but he's yet to make any other kind of impact in the usual fantasy categories and has struck out twice. There has been no clear indication from manager Bob Melvin as to why Barreto has been relegated to the bench, but Shayna Rubin of The Mercury News speculates that Pinder's quick acclimation to playing second has played a major role, and that Barreto's opportunities may be limited to occasional starts against southpaws at the keystone or as a designated hitter for the time being.
