On Sunday, the Arizona Diamondbacks demoted catcher Jose Herrera to Triple-A Reno and shifted infielder Kevin Newman to the minor league camp, reducing the major league roster to 30 players.
During the spring, Herrera recorded a 5-for-21 performance at the plate across 10 games, tallying five singles, four walks, and six strikeouts.
Herrera, who was part of the 2013 international signing class, has been a part of Arizona’s farm system since he was 17 in 2014. However, he has faced consistent struggles with batting throughout his career, managing a .189/.250/.207 slash line in 2022. Despite his difficulties, he saw an uptick in playing time in 2023 after an injury to Carson Kelly during spring training elevated Herrera to the role of the D-backs’ primary backup catcher for most of last season, including the postseason. In 120 plate appearances last season, he batted .208 with zero home runs and only five extra-base hits.
Tucker Barnhart is expected to take over as Arizona’s backup catcher for the 2024 season. The 33-year-old, who signed a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training in January, brings significant MLB experience, having played 881 games for teams such as the Cincinnati Reds (2014-21), Detroit Tigers (2022), and Chicago Cubs (2023). Despite being released by the Cubs in August last year after featuring in 43 games, Barnhart exhibited a .202/.285/.257 slash line with a home run and three doubles in 109 at-bats. His performance in nine spring games includes a .200 batting average, along with four walks and four strikeouts.
Newman joined the D-backs through a minor league contract in January. The former Pirates and Reds infielder, who played collegiately with the Arizona Wildcats before being drafted in the first round by Pittsburgh in 2015, went 6-for-30 at the plate with a home run, four RBIs, and eight strikeouts in 16 spring games.
Last season, the 30-year-old recorded a .253/.311/.364 slash line with 28 runs and 28 RBIs in 74 games, while also splitting his time between shortstop (19 games), second base (16 games), and third base (24 games).
The D-backs are scheduled to return to Chase Field on Monday and Tuesday for exhibition games against the Cleveland Guardians before their season opener against the Colorado Rockies on Thursday.
