• Righty Ben Rowen has opted out of his contract with the Orioles and is now a free agent, MASNsports.com’s Steve Melewski reports (via Twitter).  Rowen’s contract gave him the option of opting out if he wasn’t on the team’s MLB roster by July 1.  Rowen has a 2.41 ERA, 24 strikeouts and six walks over 37 1/3 Triple-A relief innings this season, and he appeared eight big league games with Texas in 2014.
• Earlier this week, the Twins signed veteran righty Scott Atchison to a minor league contract, according to MLB.com’s official transactions page.  Atchison his the open market last week when he was released by the Indians.  Atchison posted a 6.86 ERA, 5.5 K/9 and a 3:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 19 2/3 innings out of Cleveland’s bullpen this season, though with strong numbers in 2011-14, it’s a no-risk signing by the Twins to see if Atchison can regain his form.
• Reliever Ronald Belisario, who was recently outrighted by the Rays, has cleared waivers and elected to become a free agent, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The Rays recently designated Belisario for assignment after he allowed seven runs in eight innings in a brief stint with the team covering two weeks in late June.
• The Mariners have outrighted outfielder Julio Morban, MLB.com’s Greg Johns tweets. The move clears a spot on the Mariners’ 40-man roster, which now stands at 39. Morban, 23, had a pair of strong seasons in 2012 at Class A+ High Desert and in 2013 at Double-A Jackson. He has struggled with injury throughout his career, however, and his performance has tailed off significantly in the past two seasons. He only recently returned from a two-month stay on the restricted list due to personal reasons.
• The Mariners have released righty Justin Germano and lefty Rafael Perez, Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune reports. Both of them had out clauses. Germano confirms (via Twitter) that he will head to Korea to pitch with the KT Wiz. The 32-year-old was in the midst of a good season for Triple-A Tacoma, with a 2.83 ERA, 6.6 K/9 and 1.4 BB/9 in 89 innings. The 33-year-old Perez had been on loan to Quintana Roo in the Mexican League and had not actually pitched in the Mariners system.
• The Rangers have traded outfielder Jake Skole to the Yankees for cash, FOX Sports Southwest’s Anthony Andro tweets. Skole, the 15th overall pick in the 2010 draft, was hitting .218/.313/.335 for Double-A Frisco, consistent with his walk-heavy but generally unimpressive offensive performances throughout the minor league career.
• Andy Oliver has opted out of his minor league deal with the Rays, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times tweets. The 27-year-old Oliver has good stuff, particularly for a lefty, but has struggled with control problems throughout his career. He had a 3.86 ERA and 10.3 K/9 but with 7.7 BB/9 in 28 innings for Triple-A Durham. The Phillies took him in the Rule 5 Draft last winter, but he elected free agency after they outrighted him in April.
• The Giants have signed outfielder Xavier Avery to a minor league deal, Andrew Baggarly of the Mercury News tweets. The 25-year-old Avery opted out of his deal with the Tigers this week after hitting .305/.371/.393 for Triple-A Toledo. The Giants have assigned him to Triple-A Sacramento.
• The Orioles have signed Cuban first baseman Yaisel Mederos, MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko tweets. The 25-year-old Mederos hit .268/.343/.402 in parts of four seasons in Cuba’s Serie Nacional. He only hit 12 home runs in 531 plate appearances, although Kubatko notes that Mederos has power potential.

• The Diamondbacks signed pitcher J.C. Ramirez and re-signed catcher Blake Lalli. The 26-year-old Ramirez pitched 24 innings for Philadelphia in 2013, but performed poorly. He spent 2014 in the Indians system. Scouts like his 94 mph fastball, but he struggles with command and control as evidenced by a 5.63 BB/9 in his major league sample. Lalli, 32 next season, hit .275/.340/.373 in 2014 at the Triple-A level. He briefly appeared in the majors for the Cubs and Brewers during the 2012 and 2013 seasons.
• Utility infielder Ramiro Pena has elected free agency after the Braves outrighted him off the 40 man roster. Pena owns a career .244/.288/.330 line over 610 plate appearances in parts of six seasons. Capable of playing shortstop, second, and third base, the 29-year-old offers plenty of flexibility. He’s spent his entire career with the Yankees and Braves.
• The Reds signed pitchers Jose De La Torre, Marcus Walden, and utility infielder Irving Falu. De La Torre, 29, offers big strikeout stuff with control issues out of the bullpen. He appeared briefly for the Red Sox in 2013. Walden is less flashy than De La Torre, and he has spent most of his minor league career in the rotation. The 26-year-old has posted a 3.92 ERA, 5.4 K/9, and 3.1 BB/9 over 622 minor league innings. His results in the upper minors have been markedly worse. Falu, 32 next season, has appeared briefly for the Royals, Brewers, and Padres over the past two years.
• The Indians have signed outfielder Destin Hood. Possibly one of the gems of the minor league market, Hood hit .298/.348/.460 across three levels last season – mostly with the Nationals Triple-A affiliate. The former second round pick struggled prior to the 2014 campaign, which is probably why the Nationals did not add him to their 40 man roster. As Eddy notes, Hood hit .315 and slugged .556 against left-handed pitching last season, making him a good fit for a lefty heavy Cleveland lineup. He’s 25 next season.
• The Angels signed 26-year-old pitcher Alex Sanabia. The former Marlin has 138 major league innings to his name with a 4.15 ERA, 5.58 K/9, and 2.86 BB/9. The righty should serve as rotation depth.
• The Marlins signed pitcher Chris Narveson and outfielder Cole Gillespie. Narveson, a former Brewer and Cardinal, has a 4.65 ERA over 396 innings. He pitched in Japan last season with similar results. He’ll turn 33 later this month. Gillespie, once a prospect with the Diamondbacks, has bounced around the league. He’s briefly appeared with five major league clubs and owns a .230/.295/.329 batting line in 270 plate appearances. He’s 31 next season.
• The Padres have re-signed left-handed pitcher Jason Lane. The former Astros outfielder reached the majors as a pitcher last season and performed well in 10 and one-third innings. He allowed just one run on a home run, struck out six, and walked none in his age 37 season.
• The Mariners signed 32-year-old pitcher Justin Germano. The soft-tossing righty is best used as minor league depth, although he’s appeared with eight major league clubs over nine seasons. He owns a 5.40 ERA, 5.70 K/9, and 2.92 BB/9 in 330 career innings. His fastball averaged 85.5 mph last season.

• Diamondbacks outfielder Nolan Reimold has elected free agency, per the club’s transactions page. After spending the first half of 2014 on the disabled list, Reimold, who turns 31 today, was released by the Orioles in July and promptly claimed by the Blue Jays where he batted .212/.283/.404. in 60 plate appearances. Reimold was then designated for assignment by Toronto in August and claimed by the Diamondbacks. The former top-100 prospect, who has been injury-plagued undergoing a pair of neck surgeries and an ankle operation, fared much better in Arizona, albeit in a smaller sample size, slashing .294/.278/.529 in 17 plate appearances.
• Catcher Bobby Wilson and infielder Ronny Cedeno have opted for free agency rather accept their outright assignment by the Diamondbacks to Triple-A Reno, according to the Pacific Coast League’s transactions page.
• Infielder Jeff Bianchi and catcher Matt Pagnozzi have declared their free agency by refusing their outright assignment to Triple-A Colorado Springs by the Brewers, reports Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.  
• Other players declaring free agency who saw MLB action in 2014, per the PCL and International League transactions page, are: Ian Stewart (Angels), Justin Germano (Dodgers), Clint Robinson (Dodgers), Mark Lowe (Indians), Greg Dobbs (Nationals), Jason Pridie (Rockies), and Danny Worth (Tigers).

Germano, 32, has seen only minimal action at the MLB level over the past two seasons but has spent time in the majors in parts of nine years. Overall, he owns a 5.40 ERA with 5.7 K/9 against 2.9 BB/9 over 330 innings, including 48 starts. At Triple-A this year, working as a starter, Germano has pitched to a 4.51 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 over 131 2/3 frames.

Having only made two appearances for an injury-plagued Texas rotation, Germano will function as organizational depth for Los Angeles. The Dodgers have once again seen a solid pool of arms require some supplementation over the course of the year, with Josh Beckett, Chris Perez, and Paco Rodriguez all on the 15-day DL and Chad Billingsley, Paul Maholm, Chris Withrow, Onelki Garcia, Stephen Fife, and Ross Stripling among those who are down for the season.

• The Marlins announced (on Twitter) that left-hander Josh Spence has been released from their Triple-A New Orleans affiliate. Spence, a 26-year-old from Australia, pitched reasonably well for the Zephyrs, posting a 3.97 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings. However, he also walked seven hitters in that time and hit a batter. Command hasn’t been an issue for Spence in previous minor league seasons, but he walked 24 batters in 40 innings for the Padres in 2011-12 despite a strong 3.15 ERA and 9.2 K/9 rate.
• The Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate, the Reno Aces, announced today that outfielder Trent Oeltjen has been released (Twitter link). The Australian 31-year-old batted just .219/.286/.313 in 35 plate appearances for the Aces, but he has a strong .294/.358/.479 batting line in his career at that level. His last Major League action came with the 2011 Dodgers.
• Right-hander Justin Germano has accepted his outright assignment to the Rangers’ Triple-A affiliate, MLB Daily Dish’s Chris Cotillo reports (via Twitter).  Germano had the option of becoming a free agent after he was outrighted off the Rangers’ 40-man roster, following being designated for assignment earlier this week.  The veteran righty has been hit hard in his two appearances with Texas this season, posting an 11.81 ERA over 5 1/3 IP.
• The Yankees have outrighted right-hander Bruce Billings to Triple-A, according to MLB.com’s transactions page.  Billings was designated for assignment on Thursday.  The righty allowed four runs in four innings of work for New York this season, though he recorded seven strikeouts in that brief stretch.
• With Billings’ situation resolved, MLBTR’s DFA Tracker tells us that three players remain in DFA limbo: Royals outfielder Justin Maxwell, White Sox infielder Jeff Keppinger and Marlins reliever Carlos Marmol.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

• Athletics first baseman Daric Barton cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Sacramento, according to Joe Stiglich of CSNBayArea.com (on Twitter).  Barton, 28, has yet to repeat his outstanding 2010 campaign, when he played in 159 games and put up a .273/.393/.405 line while leading the league with 110 walks.
• The Marlins announced that they have outrighted Henry Rodriguez to Triple-A New Orleans. Rodriguez, designated for assignment on Wednesday, displayed what have become typical command problems for him in 2014, walking five batters in just 1 2/3 innings pitched for the Fish.
• The Rangers have outrighted Justin Germano to Triple-A Round Rock, according to the MLB.com transactions page.  Texas designated the right-hander for assignment on Wednesday to make room on the roster for Scott Baker.  Germano appeared in just two games for the Rangers, yielding seven runs in 5 1/3 innings of work. The veteran swingman has seen time in the Major Leagues in each of the past five seasons and owns a career 5.40 ERA in 330 innings pitched.

Germano appeared in just two games for the Rangers, yielding seven runs in 5 1/3 innings of work. The veteran swingman has seen time in the Major Leagues in each of the past five seasons and owns a career 5.40 ERA in 330 innings pitched. He signed a minor league deal with the club this offseason.

For Baker, this is the second time he’s had his contract selected by the team. General manager Jon Daniels and his staff were likely thrilled that they were able to sneak Baker through outright waivers, as Daniels expressed considerable regret over the circumstances that led to Baker’s original DFA. The longtime Twin pitched well in his lone Rangers appearance, allowing two runs in 5 1/3 innings of long relief, and he’s pitched very well in 38 Triple-A frames. Baker is trying to reestablish himself after 2012 Tommy John surgery and multiple setbacks in his recovery from that procedure last year.

• The Rangers have agreed to a minor league deal with Kensuke Tanaka, according to a report from Sponichi (Japanese link) passed along by Patrick Newman of NPB Tracker (via Twitter).  The Giants released the second baseman/left fielder back in September after designating him for assignment.  The 32-year-old saw limited time with the Giants this season but excelled in 400 plate appearances at Triple-A Fresno, batting .329/.400/.397 with three homers and 22 steals.
• The Rangers have signed right-hander Justin Germano to a minor league contract with an invite to spring training, according to Evan Grant of the Dallas News (via Twitter).  Germano saw two innings of work for the Blue Jays last season but spent most of 2013 with their Triple-A affiliate, turning in a 4.47 ERA with 6.1 K/9 and 1.6 BB/9.
• Greg Reynolds signed to pitch for the Seibu Lions of NPB in 2014, according to CAA Sports (via Twitter).  Reynolds spent last season with the Reds' Triple-A affiliate, posting a 2.42 ERA with 5.6 K/9 and 1.5 BB/9 in 156 1/3 innings.
• The Mariners announced that they've outrighted outfielder Travis Witherspoon to Triple-A Tacoma. The 24-year-old Witherspoon was designated for assignment last week to clear a roster spot for Corey Hart.
• Rick van den Hurk is returning to the Samsung Lions of the KBO, where he helped them capture the the Korean Series title last year, according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com (via Twitter).  The deal is pending a physical exam.  VandenHurk, 28, last appeared in the majors with the Pirates for a handful of games in 2012.  
• The Pirates announced that they have signed seven minor league free agents, including Travis Ishikawa, Michael Martinez, Daniel Schlereth, Adam Wilk, and Kyle McPherson.  All of those deals are minor league contracts with invites to big league spring training.  Ishikawa had 20 combined plate appearances for the Yankees and Orioles last season, but spent the bulk of the year at the Triple-A level, where he hit .290/.389/.465 with nine homers.  Martinez, 31, had 40 big league PAs for the Phillies and posted a .300/.352/.407 line for Triple-A Lehigh Valley.  Schlereth, a first-round pick in the 2008 draft, has 94 career big league relief appearances to his credit.

Steve Adams contributed to this post.

Germano, a 30-year-old journeyman, signed a minor league deal with the Blue Jays early in the offseason. He has made just one relief appearance with Toronto this year, allowing two earned runs over two innings. Germano started twelve games for the Cubs last season, but struggled to a 6.75 ERA during his stint with Chicago. 

The 30-year-old Germano has appeared in one game for the Jays this season after signing a minor-league deal with the club in the offseason.  Toronto promoted him on April 27 after they designated fellow pitcher Aaron Laffey for assignment.

Germano pitched 23 innings for Triple-A Buffalo this year while posting a 6.65 ERA, 5.9 K/9, and 0.8 BB/9.  The righty has also pitched for the Padres, Reds, Indians, Red Sox, and Cubs over the course of his big league career, compiling a 5.29 career ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9 along the way.

The Blue Jays optioned Romero to High-A Dunedin in late March in an effort to get his mechanics ironed out.  The pitcher is owed $7.5MM in each of the next three seasons and Toronto was willing to be patient with him as he worked through his issues.

Shi Davidi of Sportsnet (on Twitter) reported yesterday that the Blue Jays were gearing up to designate Germano for assignment in order to make room for Romero.

Germano has pitched 23 innings for Triple-A Buffalo in 2013, with a 6.65 ERA, 5.9 K/9 and 0.8 BB/9. The righty has also pitched for the Padres, Reds, Indians, Red Sox and Cubs, compiling a 5.29 career ERA with 5.7 K/9 and 2.9 BB/9.

Germano elected free agency from the Cubs in late October after being outrighted to Triple-A Iowa.  The 30-year-old had a a 6.75 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in twelve starts and one relief appearance for the Cubs in 2012.  Prior to that, Germano was with the Red Sox's Triple-A affiliate where he posted a 2.40 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9.

The 30-year-old posted a 6.75 ERA with 6.3 K/9 and 2.7 BB/9 in twelve starts and one relief appearance for the Cubs this season.  The right-hander also made 16 starts and one relief appearance for the Red Sox’s Triple-A affiliate in 2012, posting a 2.40 ERA with 6.2 K/9 and 1.1 BB/9.

• The Astros have claimed outfielder Che-Hsuan Lin off waivers from the Red Sox, reports MLB.com's Brian McTaggart (Twitter link).  Lin made his Major League debut this season, appearing in nine games for Boston before being designated for assignment last week.
• In a corresponding move, the Astros announced that right-hander Enerio Del Rosario has been designated for assignment.  Del Rosario posted a 9.00 ERA in 19 relief innings for Houston last season.
• Outfielder Rich Thompson has elected free agency, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times.  Thompson was outrighted to Triple-A by the Rays earlier this week.  The 33-year-old appeared in 23 games for the Rays last season, his first taste of Major League action with a six-game stint with the Royals in 2004.
• The Cubs outrighted Joe Mather, Blake Parker and Justin Germano to Triple-A Iowa, tweets MLB.com's Carrie Muskat.  Manny Corpas was also among Chicago's outright assignments today and the reliever has already chosen to become a free agent.
• Matt Eddy of Baseball America recaps the week's minor league transactions, including the news that the Orioles have officially released Dontrelle Willis, who intended to retire back in July.

It appears as though Germano could be rotation depth in case the Cubs deal Matt Garza or Ryan Dempster.  Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald tweets that prospect Casey Coleman was scratched from his Triple-A start today in case Germano can't make it to St. Louis in time for the Cubs' game with the Cardinals on Friday.  Dempster is scheduled to start that game, though we heard earlier today that the Cubs will have a backup starter — clearly either Coleman or Germano — on hand should Dempster be traded before Friday night.  This is just a cautionary move from the Cubs, as MLB.com's Carrie Muskat (Twitter link) reports that a Dempster trade is not imminent.

In a corresponding move, the Cubs designated Jairo Asencio for assignment.  Chicago claimed Asencio off waivers when the right-hander was DFA'ed by the Indians in May.  The 28-year-old Asencio has a 4.91 ERA in 30 games (40 1/3 innings) with the Indians and Cubs this season.