1:03pm: Rangers EVP of communications John Blake has announced the move (on Twitter), adding that outfielder Antoan Richardson has been placed on the 60-day DL to create a spot on the 40-man roster for Verrett.
12:58pm: The Rangers have claimed right-hander Logan Verrett off waivers from the Orioles, reports MASNsports.com’s Roch Kubatko (on Twitter). Verrett, a 24-year-old right-hander, had been selected by the Orioles from the Mets organization in December’s Rule 5 Draft.
The Rangers will have to carry Verrett on their 25-man roster all season or expose him to waivers themselves. Should he clear waivers, he’d then have to be offered back to the Mets for $25K before the Rangers even had a hope of outrighting him to the Minor Leagues. Texas could also work out a trade with New York to retain Verrett’s rights and be able to option him to the Minors.
Verrett was a third-round pick of the Mets back in 2011 and reached the Triple-A level for the first time in 2014, where he pitched 162 innings to 4.33 ERA with 6.6 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 over the life of 28 starts. This spring, he’s been excellent, allowing just three earned runs with a 12-to-2 K/BB ratio in 14 innings of work for Baltimore. It seems, however, that he was still unable to crack the Orioles’ bullpen.
