Texas Rangers Sign Astros Reliever, Angels First Baseman, Royals Infielder To Minor League Deals

Left-hander Blake Taylor, first baseman and right fielder Jared Walsh, and infielder Matt Duffy each received invitations to the Texas Rangers' big league spring training camp.

The Texas Rangers signed three players to minor league contracts with invitations to Major League spring training camp on Thursday.

Former Houston Astros left-handed reliever Blake Taylor, Los Angeles Angels first baseman and right-fielder Jared Walsh and journeyman Matt Duffy give the club 64 players on its spring training roster, which includes the full 40-man roster, plus 24 non-roster invitees.

Duffy, 33, played in 78 games for the Royals n 2023. He had a slash line of .251/.306/.325/.631 (48-191) with two home runs, eight doubles, and 16 RBI.

Duffy batted .277 with 31 homers, 102 doubles, and 231 RBI in 704 games with the San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago Cubs, Angels and Royals. He was managed by Rangers manager Bruce Bochy when he played for the Giants from 2014-16. Duffy was the runner-up behind Kris Bryant for the N.L. Rookie of the Year in 2015 when he batted .295, with 28 doubles, 12 homers and 77 RBI.

Duffy was also a Rangers' non-roster invitee in 2020.

Walsh, 30, played in 39 games with the Angels in 2023 after opening the season on the Injured List. He batted .125 with four homers and 11 RBI. The left-handed batter and fielder was a 2021 A.L. All-Star with the Angels when he had career highs with 29 homers, 34 doubles, and 98 RBI. 

Taylor, 28, was 0-2 with a 5.15 ERA in 36.2 innings over 35 relief appearances for Triple-A Sugar Land in the Astros system in 2023. He was designated for assignment on July 31 and released on Aug. 4. 

From 2020 to 2022 for the Astros, he was 7-6 with one save, a 3.06 ERA, and 67 strikeouts in 79.1 innings.

Taylor was drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the second round of the 2013 MLB draft and played for them for 10 seasons before joining the New York Mets from 2014 to 19.

Texas Rangers Filling Up Bullpen Options

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