The Texas Rangers have claimed righthanded pitcher Jose Butto on waivers from the San Francisco Giants, the team announced today. In addition, the team announced that outfielder Michael Helman has cleared waivers and been outrighted.
Butto, 28, has spent most of his career in the New York Mets organization. He appeared in one game in 2022 for the Mets, allowing seven runs in a four inning start, then appeared in nine games for them in 2023. After putting up a 2.55 ERA in 30 games in 2024, he was sent to the Giants as part of the package for Tyler Rogers at the 2025 trade deadline. Butto appeared in just three games at the beginning of 2026 before undergoing surgery to remove a blood clot from his right arm, which ended his season.
Butto is arbitration-eligible, though he is projected to make little over the league minimum. He is also out of options. He doesn't throw that hard, doesn't strike out a ton of batters and walks way too many guys, but he does get groundballs, so he has that going for him. He's a cheap bullpen arm they can take to camp and see what happens.
As for Helman, I'm reasonably certain he now becomes a free agent, due to how much professional service time he has.
