ARLINGTON, Texas — Veteran reliever Diego Castillo is among seven free agents who have signed minor league contracts with the Texas Rangers that include invitations to spring training with the World Series champions.
The Rangers announced the signings Wednesday of Castillo and two other right-handed pitchers, Gerardo Carrillo and Jesus Tinoco, along with catcher Andrew Knapp and outfielders Sandro Fabian, Elier Hernandez and Derek Hill.
Castillo has a 24-18 record with 35 saves and 3.22 ERA over six big league seasons with Tampa Bay (2018-21) and Seattle (2021-23), with opponents hitting only .200 against him. The right-hander, who turns 30 on Jan. 18, allowed six earned runs over 8 2/3 innings in eight relief appearances for the Mariners last season.
Tinoco had a 2.93 ERA in 38 appearances this year for the Saitama Seibu Lions of the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization in Japan. Before that, he made 48 appearances over four big league seasons with Colorado (2019-21), Miami (2021) and Texas (2022). He pitched in 17 games for the Rangers, and in one of his two starts allowed the 62nd home run hit by New York Yankees star Aaron Judge to break the AL single-season record.
Knapp is a 32-year-old switch-hitter who played 93 games at the Triple-A level for the Detroit and Houston organizations this year. He has played in 325 big league games for Philadelphia (2017-21), Pittsburgh (2022), Seattle (2022) and San Francisco (2022).
Rangers pitchers and catchers will have their first spring training workout in Surprise, Arizona, on Feb. 14. The first full-squad workout is scheduled for Feb. 19.
