#minor-league-contract

#minor-league-contract

The Nationals are in agreement with lefty reliever Zach Penrod on a minor league contract, reports Will Sammon of The Athletic. The Dynamic Sports Group client would be paid an $800K rate, marginally above the minimum, if he makes the MLB roster. Penrod is a former Red Sox farmhand who made seven appearances for Boston in 2024. Nationals president of baseball operations Paul Toboni was an assistant general manager for the Sox at the time.

Ríos is a 32-year-old righty who has logged parts of six seasons in the majors. The Puerto Rico native got the majority of his work early in his career as a member of the Phillies. He saw more limited action with the Pirates, Mariners, Red Sox and Athletics between 2019-23. Ríos has spent the last two seasons in the Mets organization without getting a look at the MLB level.

Brigham (who turns 34 in February) is a veteran of six Major League seasons, with 120 2/3 innings pitched over 94 total games with the Marlins, Mets, and Diamondbacks. Three of Brigham's six seasons included four or fewer appearances, including his work with Arizona in 2025 - the righty posted an 8.10 ERA over four games and 3 1/3 innings.

The Tigers signed reliever Burch Smith to a minor league contract, reports Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free-Press. The righty receives an invitation to MLB camp and will be guaranteed a $1.5MM base salary if he makes the big league roster. Smith, 36 in April, has played for seven big league clubs over a 15-year career that has taken him around the globe.

The Tigers agreed to a minor league contract with reliever Dugan Darnell, as first reflected on the MLB.com transaction tracker. Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free-Press reports that Darnell will receive a non-roster invite to MLB camp. He'd make a little more than the $780K league minimum if he cracks the big league roster. Although Darnell will be with the club in camp, he's not going to see any game action.

Arroyo, 31 in May, was once a notable prospect but he hasn't been able to do much with scattered big league opportunities. In seven seasons from 2017 to 2023, he appeared in 295 games split between the Giants, Rays, Guardians and Red Sox. In his 992 plate appearances, his 21.7% strikeout rate was decent but he only walked 5.1% of the time and hit just 24 home runs. That led to a combined .252/.299/.394 line and 86 wRC+.

Walton has appeared in six of the last seven MLB seasons, though 49 of his 72 games in the Show came in 2021-22 with the Mariners and Giants. After signing a minors deal with the Mets last offseason, Walton was traded to the Phillies in July, and continued to toil away on the farm until his contact was selected to Philadelphia's active roster in September.

The 32-year-old sidearmer is looking to rebound from three straight injury-marred seasons. A Tommy John surgery entirely wiped out Effross' 2023 campaign, and a back surgery during that TJ rehab period kept Effross out of any game action until June 2024, and he ended up tossing 35 1/3 minor league innings that season as well as 3 1/3 MLB frames with the Yankees. During Spring Training 2025, Effross then suffered a Grade 2 hamstring strain that led to three more months on the shelf, and he amassed only 10 2/3 innings for New York while being frequently shuffled up and down from the minors.

Saucedo, 32, made his big league debut as a member of the Blue Jays back in 2021 but got the majority of his work over the years with the Mariners after Seattle picked him up off waivers prior to the 2023 season. Saucedo proved to be a viable middle relief arm for the Mariners across two seasons, pitching to a 3.54 ERA in 86 1/3 innings of work with a 21.7% strikeout rate against a walk rate of 11.0%.

Azocar had a brief stint on Atlanta's MLB roster this year. He signed a big league deal on May 30 and spent a little over two weeks on Brian Snitker's bench. He was limited to two appearances, both as a late-game substitute, and flew out in his only at-bat. The Venezuela native also got into 12 games with the Mets earlier in the year. He made five starts and went 5-18 (all singles) with a pair of walks and a stolen base.

Miranda, 28 in June, seemed like a long-term piece for the Twins not too long ago. He debuted with Minnesota in 2022 and hit 15 home runs in 483 plate appearances. His 5.8% walk rate was quite low but he was also tough to punch out, going down on strikes just 18.8% of the time. He finished that year with a .268/.325/.426 line and 116 wRC+, splitting his time between the two infield corners.

Peguero was once a touted young infielder whom the Pirates acquired from the D-backs in exchange for Starling Marte. He's a former top-100 prospect who was once viewed as a possible shortstop of the future in Pittsburgh. Peguero's bat has never come around, however. He's seen action in four big league seasons but has mustered only a .227/.278/.368 slash line in 315 turns at the plate.

Tromp qualified for minor league free agency last week after finishing the year in the Red Sox's farm system. The Aruban-born catcher had hit just .135/.183/.167 in 28 games for Boston's top affiliate. That predictably did not get him an MLB look. Tromp had made eight big league appearances earlier in the season, splitting that time between Atlanta and Baltimore. He'd begun the season as Atlanta's backup catcher behind eventual Rookie of the Year Drake Baldwin, as Sean Murphy was sidelined by a broken rib for the first couple weeks.

Omar Narváez has signed a minor league contract with the Rangers and will report to Triple-A Round Rock after a challenging stint in recent seasons.

Matt Gorski, recently signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers, previously played for the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he made his MLB debut this season. Despite a challenging start with a hand injury, Gorski managed to hit two home runs in 42 plate appearances over 15 games after being called up. His strong Spring Training performance included a .360 batting average with four home runs. Gorski has played multiple positions and has shown potential for future contributions, possibly reporting to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Keuchel, 37, has pitched in parts of 13 big league seasons and was one of the top lefties in the sport at his peak.

Dunn signed an offseason minor league deal with Chicago. He had a tough run in Triple-A, allowing a 7.64 ERA across 33 innings.

Reid-Foley has shown huge swing-and-miss ability but also persistent command troubles, particularly after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2022, impacting his performance.