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Rangers Rumors

Jesse Chavez Announces Retirement

By Darragh McDonald | July 24, 2025 at 2:20pm CDT

Right-hander Jesse Chavez announced his retirement on Foul Territory today. He was on the Braves’ roster until recently but was designated for assignment a week ago when that club acquired Dane Dunning. Chavez elected free agency after clearing waivers and has apparently decided to hang up his spikes in recent days.

“I don’t think we’re gonna keep going,” Chavez said. “I think this is it, time to turn the page, focus on the next chapter in life and go help all the young kids, all the stuff that I did so they don’t have to take two steps backwards and take those three steps forward.”

Chavez wraps up his career just shy of his 42nd birthday, which is less than a month away. He had an incredibly unique career in terms of the miles he traveled and jerseys he wore over the years. As detailed by Matt Monagan of MLB.com in 2022, Chavez is the most traded player in history, having been flipped ten times.

He was initially drafted by the Cubs in the 39th round of the 2001 draft but decided to go to college. Then the Rangers took him in the 42nd round the year after and got him to sign. The draft is now only 20 rounds in length but was obviously longer back then.

Prior to making it to the majors, he was traded for the first time, getting sent to the Pirates for Kip Wells in 2006. He made his major league debut with that club in 2008, tossing 15 innings with a 6.60 earned run average. He stuck with the Bucs through 2009 but then before the 2010 season was flipped to the Rays for Akinori Iwamura and then to the Braves for Rafael Soriano. His first stint with Atlanta lasted just a few months, as he was traded to the Royals at the deadline alongside Gregor Blanco and Tim Collins for Rick Ankiel and Kyle Farnsworth.

He stuck with the Royals through the 2011 season before being put on waivers, when the Blue Jays claimed him. In August of 2012, he was traded to the Athletics in exchange for cash considerations.

At the end of the 2012 season, Chavez still hadn’t had a lot of major league success. He had a 5.99 ERA in 177 1/3 innings. The move to Oakland seemed to work out well for him. In 2013, he tossed 57 1/3 relief innings with a 3.92 ERA. He got stretched out for a rotation role and performed well. He logged 303 innings over the 2014 and 2015 seasons with a 3.83 ERA.

Going into 2016, he was traded back to the Blue Jays, with Liam Hendriks sent the other way. That second stint with the Jays lasted just a few months, as he was flipped to the Dodgers for Mike Bolsinger ahead of the 2016 deadline. Both of those clubs kept in him relief and he had a 4.43 ERA that year.

He reached free agency for the first time ahead of the 2017 season and signed a one-year, $5.8MM deal with the Angels. The Halos stretched him back out but the results weren’t great, with a 5.43 ERA through July. He was moved back to the bullpen and had a slightly better 4.94 ERA the rest of the way.

"<strongGoing into 2018, he signed a one-year, $1MM deal to return to the Rangers, the first organization he signed with. That turned out to be one of his best seasons. He was traded the Cubs for Tyler Thomas at the deadline and finished that year with a 2.55 ERA. He got to make his first postseason appearance with the Cubs, tossing a scoreless inning in the Wild Card game against the Rockies, but the Cubs ultimately lost in 13 innings.

He returned to free agency and signed with the Rangers yet again, this time on a two-year deal worth $8MM. That deal didn’t work out quite as well, as he posted a 5.21 ERA over those two seasons.

He had to settle for a minor league deal with Atlanta going into 2021, but he showed he still had something left in the tank. He was able to to throw 33 2/3 innings in the majors that year with a 2.14 ERA. He cracked the postseason roster and tossed 6 1/3 scoreless innings as Atlanta won it all, getting Chavez a World Series ring.

He signed a minor league deal with the Cubs going into 2022 and got a brief stint on their roster before getting flipped back to Atlanta for Sean Newcomb. A few months later, he and Tucker Davidson were flipped to the Angels for Raisel Iglesias.

In the latter years of his career, he always seemed to wind up back in Atlanta. Even after being traded away in August of 2022, he was back in Atlanta via waivers a few weeks later. Via further minor league deals, he ended up tossing 34 2/3 innings in 2023 with a 1.56 ERA and then 63 1/3 innings last year with a 3.13 ERA. This year, his time on the roster has been more limited, with eight innings and eight earned runs allowed.

In the end, Chavez played in 18 seasons for nine different teams, getting traded ten times. He got into 657 games and tossed 1,142 innings with a 4.27 ERA. He had a 51-66 win-loss record, nine saves and 76 holds. Baseball Reference lists his career earnings above $25MM. We at MLB Trade Rumors salute him on his incredibly long and winding career and wish him the best with the next phase of his life. Based on his comments above, it sounds like maybe he’ll turn up in a coaching role in the future.

Photos courtesy of Kelley L Cox, Tim Heitman and Charles LeClaire, Imagn Images

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Atlanta Braves Chicago Cubs Kansas City Royals Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers Newsstand Oakland Athletics Pittsburgh Pirates Texas Rangers Toronto Blue Jays Jesse Chavez Retirement

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Nick Ahmed Announces Retirement

By Nick Deeds | July 24, 2025 at 1:28pm CDT

12-year MLB veteran Nick Ahmed has announced his retirement from baseball. Ahmed made the announcement on social media earlier today. A two-time Gold Glove award winner, Ahmed played for the Diamondbacks, Giants, Dodgers, Padres, and Rangers during his time in the majors.

“For as long as I can remember, all I ever wanted to do was play baseball,” Ahmed said in his announcement. “I got to live out my childhood dream and play baseball for a very long time! After 15 professional seasons and more than a decade in the big leagues I am officially hanging up my spikes and retiring from playing baseball… I will always love the game of baseball. I am excited for my next chapter and the opportunity to give the best of me to this game we all love!”

The 35-year-old was a second-round pick by Atlanta back in 2011 out of the University of Connecticut. He was traded to Arizona as part of a package that brought back outfielder Justin Upton and infielder Chris Johnson prior to the 2013 season and made his big league debut with the Diamondbacks the following year. He made it into just 25 games that year, but in 2015 he took over for Didi Gregorius as the team’s regular shortstop. Ahmed’s .226/.275/.359 slash line (66 wRC+) in that rookie season wasn’t much to write home about, but he was a standout defender from the jump with +8 Defensive Runs Saved in his rookie season.

Injuries limited Ahmed to just 143 games across the 2016 and ’17 seasons, but he re-emerged in 2018 healthy enough to return to play on a regular basis. That age-28 season saw Ahmed reach his peak. His .234/.290/.411 (85 wRC+) slash line was still below average, but it was nonetheless a marked improvement over previous seasons. More impressive, however, was his growth defensively. Ahmed put up a defensive season for the ages in 2018, with an eye-popping +34 Outs Above Average and +25 Defensive Runs Saved. His glove was by far the most valuable of anyone in baseball that year—not just among shortstops, but at any position. Ahmed followed that brilliant performance up with one that was as good or better in 2019.

While his +17 OAA and +14 DRS weren’t quite as otherworldly as the prior season, they were still elite figures. This time, Ahmed’s strong defense was backed up by roughly league average offense, has he posted a 91 wRC+ and crushed a career-high 19 homers. Ahmed’s strong play continued into the shortened 2020 season, when he posted a 96 wRC+ with his typical excellent defense. From 2018-2020, Ahmed’s 8.9 fWAR was ninth-best among all shortstops and clocked in ahead of players like Carlos Correa and fellow defensive wizard Andrelton Simmons.

Unfortunately for Ahmed, his offense would come crashing back to Earth in 2021, when he posted a 66 wRC+. While his defense remained elite, injuries in 2022 limited him to just 17 games. His offense fell even further in 2023, and come September his defensive value just wasn’t enough to justify his roster spot as the Diamondbacks designated him for assignment to make room for top prospect Jordan Lawlar on the roster and dedicate more playing time to shortstop of the future Geraldo Perdomo. Ahmed split the 2024 season between the Giants, Dodgers, and Padres and appeared in 71 games as a bench piece and injury replacement for his three longtime division rivals before wrapping up his career with a five-game stint as a member of the Rangers this year.

All together, Ahmed appeared in 964 games during his big league career with a .233/.286/.370 slash line. He collected +118 OAA since Statcast began tracking the stat in 2016, a figure that trails on Francisco Lindor across the stat’s history. He also finished his career with +80 DRS, good for 11th overall and second among shortstops since Ahmed made his debut during the 2014 season. MLBTR joins the rest of the baseball world in congratulating Ahmed on a fine career and wishes him all the best in whatever comes next.

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Arizona Diamondbacks Los Angeles Dodgers San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Texas Rangers Nick Ahmed Retirement

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Draft Signings: Schoolcraft, Watson, Russell, Quick, Flemming, Root

By Anthony Franco | July 23, 2025 at 11:28pm CDT

There were a handful of draftees who signed for between $2MM and $4MM on Wednesday. All signings were first reported by Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline. View pre-draft scouting reports from Baseball America, FanGraphs, MLB Pipeline, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN and Keith Law of The Athletic.

  • The Padres reached agreement with first-rounder Kruz Schoolcraft on a $3.6066MM bonus that matches the slot value for the #25 overall pick. A 6’8″ left-handed prep pitcher from Oregon, Schoolcraft was committed to Tennessee. Evaluators credit him with a potential plus changeup and the ability to run his fastball into the upper 90s on occasion, though his velocity varies between starts. Schoolcraft was a two-way player in high school and would have been a legitimate prospect as a first baseman, but scouts agree that he has greater upside on the mound. He placed between 19th and 41st on the linked pre-draft rankings.
  • The Reds went well above slot with a $2.75MM bonus for second-round pick Aaron Watson. The 51st overall selection comes with a slot value around $1.89MM. Watson is a 6’5″ prep right-hander who had been committed to Florida. He sits in the low-90s at present and has advanced command and feel for manipulating a potential above-average slider. The Reds saved a bit of money by going below slot for first-rounder Steele Hall, allowing them to reallocate some money to Watson.
  • The Rangers have a $2.6MM agreement with second-rounder A.J. Russell against an approximate $1.85MM slot value. A University of Tennessee product, he’s a 6’6″ righty who missed parts of the 2024-25 seasons recovering from elbow surgery. Russell had dominated as a reliever during his freshman year but only managed 70 innings in his college career. Evaluators suggest he has a potential mid-rotation ceiling, but he’ll face questions about his ability to stick as a starter until he builds more of a track record.
  • The Twins signed supplemental first-rounder Riley Quick for $2.692MM, matching the 36th selection’s slot value.  Quick is a 6’6″ righty from the University of Alabama with a power arsenal but a limited college track record because of Tommy John surgery.
  • The A’s signed second-round pick Devin Taylor. He’s an Indiana University product who hit .374/.494/.706 with 18 homers and 52 walks against 30 strikeouts in his draft year. The lefty-hitting Taylor is viewed as one of the best offensive players in the college class but projects as below-average left fielder who might be limited to designated hitter.
  • The Rays have an overslot deal with second-round pick Cooper Flemming. The California high school infielder receives a $2.2975MM bonus that comes in above the $1.8MM slot value. A left-handed hitter who was committed to Vanderbilt, Flemming ranked around 50th on Law’s and McDaniel’s boards but placed as low as 102nd at Baseball America. He projects to third base and has a well-rounded skillset with advanced hitting ability but doesn’t project for many plus tools.
  • The Dodgers signed 40th overall selection Zachary Root for $2.2MM, a little below the $2.43MM slot. They signed 41st selection Charles Davalan for exactly $2MM, also below slot. Root, a 6’1″ lefty from Arkansas, is viewed as a likely back-end starter on the strength of his secondary stuff. He posted a 3.62 ERA with 126 strikeouts in 19 starts this past season. Davalan was Root’s teammate with the Hogs. He hit .346 with 14 homers in his junior season. A short left-handed hitter, Davalan has plus contact skills with some bat speed and could project as an above-average defensive left fielder.

Note: This post initially called Taylor a Minnesota draft pick. MLBTR apologizes for the error.

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Cincinnati Reds Los Angeles Dodgers Minnesota Twins Oakland Athletics San Diego Padres Tampa Bay Rays Texas Rangers A.J. Russell Aaron Watson Charles Davalan Cooper Flemming Devin Taylor Kruz Schoolcraft Riley Quick Zach Root

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Rangers Activate Jon Gray, Designate Luke Jackson

By Steve Adams | July 23, 2025 at 3:05pm CDT

The Rangers announced Wednesday that they’ve reinstated right-hander Jon Gray from the 60-day injured list. To make space on the active and 40-man rosters, reliever Luke Jackson has been designated for assignment.

Gray, 33, is in the final season of a four-year, $56MM contract signed in free agency. He’s been a solid if unspectacular presence in the middle of the Texas rotation, tossing a combined 387 1/3 innings of 4.16 ERA ball while fanning 22.4% of his opponents versus a 7.5% walk rate. Gray has yet to pitch this season after suffering a fracture when a comeback line-drive struck him in the forearm late in spring training.

It’s not immediately clear when or whether Gray will slot back into the rotation. The Rangers had given some thought to using him out of the bullpen over the winter, and the rotation in Texas has generally been strong. Kumar Rocker has been the least-effective Texas starter overall, but he’s rattled off a 3.34 ERA over his past six starts. Jack Leiter has pitched well of late as well. There were also plenty of trade rumblings about Gray in the winter, but his value isn’t exactly at a high point after missing the entire season to date.

At least for today, there’s no urgent rush to answer the question. Gray pitched on July 19, so his would-be turn in the rotation isn’t up yet. Texas is off tomorrow, too, affording them extra time to plan things out. Patrick Corbin gets the nod in tonight’s start against the visiting A’s. The Rangers have Rocker listed as probable for Friday, a TBD listed for Saturday and Leiter listed as Sunday’s probable starter. Gray’s return and tomorrow’s off-day could impact plans.

Jackson, 33, leads the Rangers with nine saves but hasn’t pitched especially well. He currently owns a 4.11 earned run average with rate stats that make even that number feel a bit fortunate. The right-hander’s 15.8% strikeout rate is the eighth-lowest mark among the 175 major league relievers to have tossed at least 30 innings this season. Only 17 of those 175 relievers have a higher walk rate than Jackson’s 12.5% clip, and he’s also plunked a pair of batters. Metrics like FIP (5.01) and SIERA (4.79) paint a rather unfavorable picture.

The Rangers signed Jackson to a one-year, $1.5MM deal in free agency. He’s already earned $450K of incentives based on appearances. He’s one game shy of a $175K bonus, but if the Rangers were truly concerned about him reaching those incentive milestones, they’d likely have made a move sooner. Jackson earned $75K for reaching 20 games, $100K for reaching 25 games, $125K for 30 games and $150K for 35 games.

Texas will have five days to trade Jackson, place him on outright waivers or place him on release waivers. He has enough service time to reject an outright and retain the remainder of his guaranteed salary anyhow, so it seems unlikely he’d accept an outright upon clearing waivers. A release is the most probable outcome, given that any team trading for Jackson would remain on the hook for the rest of his incentives (which continue in increasing increments up through 60 appearances). Upon clearing release waivers, he’d be free to sign anywhere for only the prorated league minimum, and the remainder of those incentives would become moot. Texas would be on the hook for the rest of his $1.5MM guarantee, minus the prorated minimum for any time he spends on another club’s roster.

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Texas Rangers Transactions Jon Gray Luke Jackson

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MLBTR Podcast: David Robertson, Trade Chips For The O’s and A’s, And What The Rangers Could Do

By Darragh McDonald | July 23, 2025 at 9:56am CDT

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…

  • The Phillies signing David Robertson (1:40)
  • Orioles general manager Mike Elias basically admitting they will be selling (7:00)
  • The Athletics listening on their starters but not Mason Miller (16:05)
  • The Rangers flipping Dane Dunning and hanging around the Wild Card race (23:35)

Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • What about a Duran Duran trade? Jarren Duran of the Red Sox for Jhoan Durán of the Twins? (29:55)
  • Should the Angels be buying? (37:30)
  • If the Cardinals are sellers, who should be untouchable? (44:50)

Check out our past episodes!

  • Rays’ Ownership, The Phillies Target Bullpen Help, And Bubble Teams – listen here
  • Firings in Washington, Bad Braves, And An AL East Shake-Up – listen here
  • Depleted Mets’ Pitching, The Pirates Are Open For Business, And More! – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff.  Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images

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Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox Los Angeles Angels MLB Trade Rumors Podcast Minnesota Twins Oakland Athletics Philadelphia Phillies St. Louis Cardinals Texas Rangers David Robertson

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Rangers Sign Carl Edwards Jr. To Minor League Deal

By Darragh McDonald | July 22, 2025 at 1:36pm CDT

The Rangers have signed veteran right-hander Carl Edwards Jr. to a minor league deal and assigned him to Triple-A Round Rock. Kennedi Landry of MLB.com was among those to relay the news.

Edwards, 33, returns to his original organization. The Rangers drafted him back in 2013, though he was traded to the Cubs prior to his major league debut. He went on to have his best years with the Cubs, winning a ring with them in 2016.

More recently, Edwards has been up and down as he has entered journeyman mode. After a rough 2019 season, he struggled to get playing time for a few years. He had a nice bounceback with the Nationals in 2022. He carried that over into 2023 somewhat but then got shut down in August of that year due to a stress fracture in his shoulder. He was limited to just one major league appearance last year and has made just two this year.

His 2025 season has seen him go to Mexico and back a couple of times now. In early March, he signed with the Tigres de Quintana Roo. But by late March, he had a minor league deal with the Angels. He was called up to the majors in late April, made two appearances for the Halos before being designated for assignment. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and then rejoined the Tigres.

Though he’s been a reliever throughout his MLB career, he’s been starting for the Tigers for the past few months. He tossed 74 2/3 innings over 14 starts with a 3.38 earned run average, 18.9% strikeout rate and 7.5% walk rate. For context, it’s worth pointing out that the Mexican League is very hitter-friendly, with a league-wide ERA of 5.90 this year.

The Rangers have sacrificed some Triple-A starting depth in recent months. Adrian Houser was granted his release in May and signed with the White Sox. Gerson Garabito was released to sign in Korea last month. Dane Dunning was traded to Atlanta last week to trim some payroll. Six pitchers have made eight or more starts for Round Rock this year and three of them are no longer in the organization.

Edwards is stretched out and has been pitching well, relative to the standards of the Mexican League, so he’ll presumably plug into the rotation for the Express and give the Rangers some extra depth in that department.

Photo courtesy of Matt Krohn, Imagn Images

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Texas Rangers Transactions Carl Edwards Jr.

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Rangers Sign First-Round Pick Gavin Fien

By Anthony Franco | July 21, 2025 at 10:44pm CDT

The Rangers announced the signing of four draftees, including first-round pick Gavin Fien. Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline reports that the 18-year-old infielder received a $4.8MM bonus. That’s a decent amount below the $5.75MM slot value associated with the 12th overall selection.

Fien was a divisive prospect. Before the draft, Kiley McDaniel of ESPN and The Athletic’s Keith Law each slotted the right-handed hitter as the #12 player in the class. MLB Pipeline had him 22nd, while both Baseball America (31) and FanGraphs (34) viewed him as more of a fringe first-round talent. Evaluators all agree that the 6’3″ Fien will not stick at shortstop. Most reports project him as a long-term third baseman, though FanGraphs feels there’s a chance he’ll be pushed to the corner outfield.

There’s more of a split camp on Fien’s offensive acumen. While there’s not much doubt about his above-average to plus raw power projection, some scouts have expressed concern about atypical hitting mechanics and a stiffness in his swing. Fien raked on the showcase circuit last summer but disappointed some evaluators with his performance in the high school season this spring. There seems to be a wide range of outcomes on his pure hitting ability, but the more optimistic evaluators feel he could be a power-hitting infielder with a plus or better arm at third base.

The Rangers are clearly on the high end of those evaluations. They signed Fien away from a commitment to the University of Texas. He’s one of three high schoolers whom the Rangers selected in the top 10 rounds. They took infielders Josh Owens (third round) and Jack Wheeler (sixth) and could reallocate some of their cost savings on Fien to one or both of those players.

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2025 Amateur Draft Texas Rangers Gavin Fien

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Rangers Place Chris Martin On IL With Calf Strain

By Darragh McDonald | July 21, 2025 at 4:15pm CDT

4:15pm: Manager Bruce Bochy says Martin will miss four to six weeks, per Shawn McFarland of The Dallas Morning News.

3:30pm: The Rangers announced a series of roster moves today. Third baseman Josh Jung, infielder/outfielder Michael Helman and righty Cole Winn have all been recalled from Triple-A Round Rock. In corresponding moves, they have optioned infielder Justin Foscue and outfielder Alejandro Osuna to Round Rock and placed right-hander Chris Martin on the 15-day injured list due to a left calf strain.

Martin was removed from last night’s game after a visit from the training staff. After the game, the club announced to reporters that it was due to a calf strain. It is apparently severe enough that he’ll sit out at least the next few weeks. It’s the second IL stint of the year for Martin. He also missed a couple of weeks in late May and early June due to right shoulder fatigue. He’s still been effective when on the mound, with a 2.36 earned run average, 25.7% strikeout rate and 4.3% walk rate.

The Rangers will now be without one of their better relievers for a while, a tough blow at a tough time. The club is one of many bubble teams who are sort of near contention but also not firmly in buyer mode ahead of next week’s deadline. The Rangers are 3.5 games back of a playoff spot, with four other American League teams behind them by two games or fewer. For many of these clubs, the next few weeks could determine whether the club buys or sells or to what degree. As the club tries to win these key games in the next week-plus, they will have to do so without Martin.

The recall of Jung is also notable. When healthy, he’s been the club’s regular third baseman for a few years now. However, he fell into a bad funk this year and was sent down to the minors for a reset. He had a .277/.321/.440 slash line and 113 wRC+ through the end of May. But then in June and early July, he slashed .158/.208/.221 for a wRC+ of 19.

He hasn’t exactly been brought back to life on his optional assignment. He has a .205/.225/.410 batting line and 47 wRC+ in eight Triple-A games, though he did hit homers in two of his past three games.

His recall might have more to do with other developments, as the Rangers recently put Jake Burger on the IL. With Joc Pederson also on the IL, they’ve been light in the first base/designated hitter area. Rowdy Tellez was recently added to the roster but backup catcher Kyle Higashioka has been DHing a lot. If Jung retakes the third base job, Josh Smith could be freed up to play some first base or serve as the DH. Jung is in the lineup at third tonight with Smith at first. The Rangers are facing a lefty starter, so Tellez is on the bench with Cody Freeman in the DH spot.

What’s also notable for Jung is that he has been recalled fairly quickly. He came into this year with his service clock at two years and 27 days. A lengthy optional assignment of more than a month could have prevented him from getting to the three-year line in 2025, which would have pushed his free agency by a year. However, he’s been recalled within three weeks of his optioning. He could still be optioned again later in the year if he doesn’t get back on track but he still has a path to get to the three-year service mark.

Photo courtesy of Lon Horwedel, Imagn Images

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Texas Rangers Alejandro Osuna Chris Martin Cole Winn Josh Jung Justin Foscue Michael Helman

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AL West Notes: Trout, Rangers, Rodgers, Waldichuk

By Mark Polishuk | July 19, 2025 at 7:26pm CDT

Mike Trout was hitting .179/.264/.462 when a bone bruise in his left knee sent him to the injured list on May 2, but since being activated from the IL, Trout has been closer to his old superstar form in batting .287/.432/.483 over his last 183 plate appearances.  It might not be a coincidence that Trout has excelled since exclusively acting as a designated hitter since his return, as the Angels have been cautiously managing his leg health in the wake of both the bone bruise, and a variety of other leg injuries over the years.  Trout did take part in some right field drills prior to Friday’s game and came away feeling good, though he told MLB.com’s Rhett Bollinger and other reporters that the team doesn’t yet have a timetable set in regards to an in-game return to right field.

Both Trout and interim manager Ray Montgomery are eager to see Trout return to right field, with Montgomery noting that freeing up the DH spot would allow more players to get partial rest days.  Time will tell when Trout is entirely physically ready to go, though there must be some slight sense of “if it ain’t broke….” within the Angels’ decision process.  Trout has been so hammered by injuries in recent years that if regular DH duty allows him to stay in the lineup and post big numbers, the Halos surely have to be considering whether limiting Trout to just cameo appearances in the outfield could be the best course of action going forward.

More from the AL West….

  • The Rangers had interest in Kyle Finnegan when the reliever was a free agent last winter, and the club has had  interest in Pirates closer David Bednar dating back to at least last season’s trade deadline, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes.  These two relievers could therefore be particular names to watch as Texas looks for help at the back of its bullpen, along with a few other closer candidates that Grant cite as possible deadline candidates.  Texas is an even 49-49 entering today’s play, so it remains to be seen if the Rangers could buy or sell at the deadline.  Speculatively, a trade for Bednar would help for both this season and as a jump start on the 2026 plans, as Bednar is arbitration-controlled for one more year.  Finnegan, meanwhile, is just a rental since he signed a one-year contract with the Nationals in the offseason.
  • Brendan Rodgers suffered a concussion and a nasal fracture after a scary collision with teammate Edwin Diaz in a game with Triple-A Sugar Land yesterday.  As a result, the Astros told the Athletic’s Chandler Rome and other reporters that Rodgers has been returned from the minor league rehab assignment that only just began with yesterday’s abbreviated Triple-A outing.  Rodgers was placed on the big league 10-day IL just over a month ago due to an oblique strain, and while the start of his rehab assignment indicated that he was getting close to a return, his timeline is now completely up in the air as he deals from these new injuries.  Over 128 plate appearances for Houston, Rodgers has hit only .191/.266/.278.
  • Ken Waldichuk has reached the end of his 30-day rehab window, so the Athletics activated the southpaw from the 60-day injured list and optioned him to Triple-A Las Vegas.  Waldichuk underwent Tommy John surgery in May 2024, and he clearly isn’t yet ready for the bigs based the results during his rehab assignment.  Over 15 1/3 minor league innings, Waldichuk has struggled to a 7.63 ERA and almost as many walks (16) as strikeouts (17).  Should he get on track, Waldichuk could emerge as an option for the A’s rotation or bullpen in August.
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Houston Astros Los Angeles Angels Notes Oakland Athletics Pittsburgh Pirates Texas Rangers Washington Nationals Brendan Rodgers David Bednar Ken Waldichuk Kyle Finnegan Mike Trout

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Rangers Select Cody Freeman

By Darragh McDonald | July 18, 2025 at 5:55pm CDT

The Rangers announced that they have selected contract of infielder Cody Freeman. Infielder Sam Haggerty was placed on the 10-day injured list due to ankle inflammation, retroactive to July 15th. The club had an open 40-man spot after trading Dane Dunning yesterday. Kennedi Landry of MLB.com was among those to relay the moves prior to the official announcement.

Freeman, 24, will be making his major league debut as soon as he gets into a game. The younger brother of Tyler Freeman of the Rockies, Cody was a fourth-round pick of the Rangers in 2019. Offensively, the younger Freeman provides a contact-forward approach. He has stepped to the plate 2,150 times in the minors with a 15.7% strikeout rate.

He has been at Triple-A for all of this year. In 350 plate appearances at that level, he has an 8.9% strikeout rate, 8% walk rate and 12 home runs. Even in the hitter-friendly context of the Pacific Coast League, his .315/.367/.494 slash line translates to a 113 wRC+.

Defensively, he is capable of bouncing around. This year, he has mostly been at third base but has also appeared in the middle infield. He has some work at first base and catcher on his track record but not in recent years.

Last month, FanGraphs gave him an honorable mention on their list of the top Ranger prospects in the “Contact-Driven Profiles” section. The quick mention of Freeman noted that he would have a future value of 40 on the 20-80 scale if he were a better defender.

Haggerty had been serving in a multi-positional bench role and Freeman will perhaps step up to do the same. As this is his first big league call, he has a full slate of options and can be easily sent back to the minors in the future, if needed.

Photo courtesy of Joe Camporeale, Imagn Images

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Texas Rangers Transactions Cody Freeman Sam Haggerty

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