MLB Player News

Jenson was designated for assignment by the Twins on Friday.

The right-hander was claimed off waivers by the Twins in early January but only stuck on the 40-man roster for a month. Jensen made 43 appearances between the Double-A and Triple-A levels last season and had a 5.32 ERA, 1.82 WHIP and 78:54 K:BB over 64.1 innings.

The Twins claimed Duarte off waivers from the Rangers on Friday.

The 27-year-old holds a 4.19 ERA and 25:23 K:BB over 34.1 innings at the major-league level over the last two seasons. Duarte will compete for a middle relief job in Minnesota, but he has an option year left so he might head to Triple-A St. Paul to start the season.

Castillo was designated for assignment by the Red Sox on Friday, Rob Bradford of WEEI.com reports.

The move frees up a spot on the 40-man roster for Tyler Heineman. Castillo had been claimed off waivers by the Red Sox a month ago and will now go through the waiver process again.

Diekman signed a one-year, $4 million contract with the Mets on Friday, Anthony DiComo of MLB.com reports.

The deal also includes a vesting option for 2025. Diekman held a 2.18 ERA and 53:25 K:BB over 45.1 innings for the Rays last season after being released by the White Sox. The left-handed reliever has a long history of control problems and swing-and-miss ability and the Mets will be hoping for more of the latter than the former in 2024.

Fujinami agreed to a one-year, $3.35 million contract with the Mets on Friday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.

The Japanese right-hander made his MLB debut with Oakland as a starter last season but was moved to the bullpen after posting a 14.26 ERA in the rotation. Fujinami pitched better as a reliever and was dealt to Baltimore in July, though his 4.85 ERA for his new club still wasn't pretty. He has plenty of strikeout potential with a 98-plus-mph fastball, but his 9.5 K/9 was underwhelming while his 5.1 BB/9 illustrated his control issues.

Scott will join big-league camp with the Mets to begin spring training, Abbey Mastracco of the New York Daily News reports.

The organization's top pitching prospect is coming off a breakout 2023 season in which he climbed up to Double-A and posted a 2.47 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and dazzling 77:8 K:BB over 12 starts and 62 innings for Binghamton. Scott isn't on the 40-man roster yet after being a fifth-round pick in 2021, but he's still a candidate to bolster the big-league rotation at some point in 2024 if last year's success carries forward into Triple-A.

Carasiti signed a minor-league contract with the Rockies on Jan. 29 that includes an invitation to spring training.

Carasiti was roughed up to the tune of a 6.29 ERA and 16:11 K:BB across 24.1 frames for the Rockies last season, but they saw enough promise in him to bring him back. The 32-year-old reliever figures to open the 2024 campaign at Triple-A Albuquerque.

Giles signed a minor-league contract with Atlanta on Friday that includes an invitation to spring training.

Giles held a showcase for teams last month and came out of it with a deal from Atlanta. The veteran reliever allowed 19 earned runs in 18 innings last season at Triple-A Oklahoma City and made just nine total appearances in the majors from 2020-22 due to injury. Still, the 33-year-old righty has 115 career saves and a 12.3 K/9 over 362 big-league relief appearances, and he carries little risk as a non-roster invitee.

Perez was outrighted to Triple-A Las Vegas on Thursday.

Perez has appeared in the majors in each of the last three seasons, though 2023 was his first with the Athletics. He posted a 5.94 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP across 16.2 innings with the team. Any other club can now claim Perez, and if he goes unclaimed, he should begin the season at Triple-A Las Vegas.

Middleton signed a one-year, $6 million contract with the Cardinals on Thursday, Robert Murray of FanSided.com reports.

The deal also includes a $5 million club option for 2025. Middleton was a quality middle reliever for the Yankees and White Sox last season, maintaining a 3.38 ERA and 1.24 WHIP across 50.2 innings -- his heaviest workload in the majors since 2017. He's unlikely to factor into the saves picture with his new club, but he should bolster the middle of the bullpen.