The New York Mets, after a slow start to free agency, are really putting together a solid offseason. On Thursday, they made another notable roster move by signing former Los Angeles Dodgers catcher and World Series champion Austin Barnes to a minor league contract. The deal includes an invitation to spring training, which is just a few weeks away.
Austin Barnes has spent his entire 11-year MLB career with the Dodgers, but has been a limited contributor to the big league team for several years now. He had been most known for being Clayton Kershaw’s personal catcher, but Kershaw is now retired, which made Barnes a little more expendable in the Dodgers’ eyes. So, what does this signing mean for the Mets?
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Mets Bring in Austin Barnes on Minor League Deal
Towards the end of Austin Barnes’ tenure with the Dodgers, he spent some time in the minor leagues, but he’s been a staple on the Dodgers’ 40-man roster for several years throughout the 2010s and early 2020s.
In 2025, Barnes appeared in 13 games at the big-league level and had just 9 hits over 42 at-bats.
Over 612 games, he is a career .223 hitter with 35 home runs, 162 RBIs, and an OPS+ of 80 over 11 seasons.
Kevin C. Cox/Getty ImagesLongtime Los Angeles Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes was released last week by the San Francisco Giants, barely a month after signing with his new team.
He has plenty of MLB experience during his time with the Dodgers, but it’s unclear what his fit with the Mets is at this moment. Austin Barnes will likely start the season in the minors, but may find his way to a couple of MLB at-bats if either Francisco Alvarez or Luis Torrens gets injured.
Even if Alvarez or Torrens goes down with an injury, New York may opt to go with a younger option in their organization before Austin Barnes gets meaningful at-bats.
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Austin Barnes’ Defense Is His Calling Card
Considering he is known as a defense-first player and never really had a strong hit tool, Austin Barnes has carved out a pretty nice career to this point, and while this is a small move for the Mets, it helps with organizational depth for the moment.
There’s no telling if the Mets are done making big-time signings, but expect small organizational-type moves like this to continue up until spring training.
With David Stearns and Steve Cohen at the helm of making decisions regarding the New York Mets, there is no telling what may transpire.
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