Rangers Open Spots on 40-Man Roster

The Texas Rangers saw five players leave Thursday, along with the release of a veteran outfielder.

The Texas Rangers spent the past two days clearing space on its 40-man roster for a couple of reasons that will become clearer in the coming weeks.

The pursuit of high-priced free-agent pitching and a potential middle-of-the-order bat requires not only money, but room to put those players. By the end of the Rangers’ flurry of transactions on Thursday, there were just 34 players on their 40-man roster.

None of the moves were earth-shattering. On Thursday, five Rangers left the team. The Rangers traded utility player Nick Solak to Cincinnati for cash considerations. Infielder Andy Ibáñez was waived and claimed by the Detroit Tigers. Pitcher Tyson Miller was waived and claimed by the Milwaukee Brewers. Both pitcher Drew Strotman and catcher Meibrys Viloria were waived and picked up by the San Francisco Giants.

Those moves came after Wednesday’s trade, which saw the Rangers trade reliever Kolby Allard for Atlanta starter Jake Odorizzi. Odorizzi is a durable veteran that the Rangers hopes ends up as a back-of-the-rotation option.

The Rangers certainly don’t intend for that to be their biggest offseason acquisition when it comes to starting pitching. The Rangers reportedly reached out to the agents of three free-agent pitchers on Thursday — Jacob deGrom, Carlos Rodón and Kodai Senga. Plus, the team made the $19.65 million qualifying offer to Martín Pérez, who led the Rangers in victories. He has until Tuesday to accept the offer or he can fully test the free-agent market. Even if he doesn’t accept the offer, it doesn’t rule out the Rangers re-signing him.

There is also the matter of Dallas native Clayton Kershaw, who did not receive a qualifying offer from the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Rangers would be interested, but the Dodgers and Kershaw are reportedly close to a new deal.

The Rangers made other moves while Chris Young was in Las Vegas for the annual general managers’ meeting. The Rangers picked up the option of relief pitcher José Leclerc, a move that cost the Rangers $6 million. That was offset by the Rangers declining the 2023 option for outfielder Kole Calhoun, making him a free agent. He was set to make $5.5 million.

The Rangers sent pitcher Jose Tinoco back to Triple-A Round Rock, removing him from the 40-man roster. The Rangers also activated four players from the 60-day injured list — designated hitter Mitch Garver, outfielder Eli White, infielder/outfielder Brad Miller and pitcher Josh Sborz. They’re not ready to play, but the moves were necessary to clean up the roster.

There is another reason the Rangers are clearing space. The Rule V Draft is coming up next month at the MLB Winter Meetings, and the Rangers have decisions to make with prospects who have enough time in the organization to be eligible. The Rangers can protect them by putting them on the 40-man roster, even if they’re not ready for the Majors. Those prospects include infielders Jonathan Ornelas and Luisangel Acuna, outfielder Dustin Harris, and pitchers Owen White, Cole Winn and Antoine Kelly.

TEXAS RANGERS 40-MAN ROSTER (34)

Pitchers (19)

A.J. Alexy, Joe Barlow, Brock Burke, Dane Dunning, Jon Gray, Taylor Hearn, Jonathan Hernández, Spencer Howard, John King, José Leclerc, Brett Martin, Jake Odorizzi, Glenn Otto, Cole Ragans, Yerry Rodriguez, Dennis Santana, Josh Sborz, Nick Snyder, Ricky Vanasco

Catchers (2): Jonah Heim, Sam Huff

Infielders (6): Ezequiel Duran, Josh Jung, Nathaniel Lowe, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Josh H. Smith

Outfielders (5): Adolis García, Brad Miller, Leody Taveras, Bubba Thompson, Eli White

Designated Hitter (2): Mitch Garver, Mark Mathias

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You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard

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