The Rangers have acquired outfielder Will Venable from the Padres in exchange for minor league catcher/outfielder Marcus Greene and right-hander Jon Edwards (who was included as a player to be named later), per a team announcement. In order to clear space on the roster for Venable, the Rangers have designated have designated outfielder Michael Choice for assignment.
Venable, 32, will give the Rangers some additional outfield depth and could immediately step into left field, if Josh Hamilton‘s injury troubles continue. Hitting .258/.318/.378, Venable is in the process of bouncing back from perhaps the worst season of his career — a 2014 campaign in which he batted just .224/.288/.325 in the first campaign of a two-year, $8.5MM extension. He’s earning $4.25MM this season as part of that contract, of which about $1.11MM remains. Venable will be a free agent at season’s end, making him a pure rental for the Rangers as they push to bridge either the three-game gap separating them from the AL West lead or the one-game gap sitting between their team and a Wild Card slot.
Venable’s career numbers (.252/.316/.410) don’t leap off the page, but he has superior numbers against right-handed pitching and away from Petco Park — the stadium which he’s called home for the entirety of his career. He’s a career .257/.323/.425 hitter against righties and a .269/.330/.431 hitter on the road.
Greene, 20, is recovering from Tommy John surgery that he underwent this June. He began the season at the Class A level, where he hit .218/.365/.500 with five homers, 16 walks and 23 strikeouts in 96 plate appearances before suffering his injury. He did not rank among the Rangers’ Top 30 prospects, but Baseball America gave him a favorable write-up upon being selected in the 16th round of the 2013 draft. Per BA, Greene’s best tool is arm strength, but he also comes with raw power upside and a solid makeup.
The 27-year-old Edwards first had to pass through revocable waivers before he could be included in the deal. He has thrown 14 1/3 big league innings over the last two seasons, working to a 5.02 ERA with 9.4 K/9 against a troubling 8.2 BB/9. But he’s been excellent this season at Triple-A, compiling a 1.42 earned run average while striking out 44 batters and issuing just eight walks over 31 2/3 frames.
Choice is a former Top 100 prospect that the Rangers acquired prior to the 2014 season in the trade that sent Craig Gentry to Oakland. Though the 25-year-old has a solid .279/.363/.463 slash line throughout his minor league career, he’s mustered just a .188/.253/.320 slash in 300 plate appearances between the Rangers and Athletics.
For the Padres, this marks the first piece that GM A.J. Preller has traded away. The first-year general manager took some heat from the media for his decision to stand pat at last month’s non-waiver deadline despite facing a significant gap in the division and Wild Card standings. It’s conceivable that this could be the first of a few trades made by the Padres, who also stand to lose Justin Upton, Ian Kennedy and Joaquin Benoit (though he does have a club option) to free agency this winter. Of that group, only Upton would be a lock for a qualifying offer, although Kennedy has pitched markedly better as of late. Right-hander James Shields has also cleared waivers and will probably see his name kicked around the rumor mill a bit more before the end of the month.
Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram first reported on Twitter that Edwards was the PTBNL.
Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
I saw Greene play in Spokane last year.. He is a pretty decent lottery ticket.. I wonder if Daniels took a bit of pity on Preller with this trade..
Good move. Preller finally saw the writing on the wall and traded an expiring contract to the highest bidder.
The Orioles could have used him in Left Field.
I still think the Orioles should try for Jose Reyes since he did clear waivers.
I know he’s lost a little bit of the luster, but he still has some skills that I value.
The O’s are missing something and they need to find what it is quickly if they want to solidify a spot in the playoffs.
I wonder if the PTBNL is a 40 man guy that couldn’t pass waivers or a 2015 draft pick like Lemoine or Ferguson.
2015 draftees aren’t tradeable.
Giants should have been all over this guy. Starting outfield tonight is Justin Maxwell, Gregor Blanco, and Ryan Lollis. Only Blanco belongs in the major leagues.
Venable does not have enough value to bring back someone from the 40 man roster…PTBNL is a formality for some “other guy” they have not agreed on
Some other guy would not be described as a “key” piece of the deal.
Called it- all venable wound up fetching was an A ball guy who can’t hit- didn’t see the injury history factor though and some PTBN- my money is on an A ball pitcher with an era around 5+
I’ll take that for a month and a half of Venable every day of the week and twice on Sundays
Thats worth more than him winning a ballgame and worsening their draft position.
Not if it takes away playing time or a roster spot from someone else.
You acquire a guy you gotta find him playing time and who’s to say he’s better than your current options,
We know what Venable is and has been so why trade for him. An unknown will remain unknown if you play this guy. Bring up a Mazara or Gallo. Better chance of being a winner than a proven sub par ???????
I guess the feeling is Mazara and Gallo’s inexperience could hurt the Rangers in a key game while they’re going for a playoff spot. Veneble isn’t a long term solution but he is a guy with still pretty good speed and the ability to step right in. The chances are he’s less likely to throw to the wrong base or get thrown out trying to do too much on the bases. However, Veneble strikes out a lot and doesn’t draw many walks.
Never seen a guy catch fire in August/September after being traded, have you? If it doesn’t work, there’s the bench, but if it works, that’s what the trade is for.
Will Venable is like the ultimate streak hitter so I’m hoping for your guys’ sake he gets hot down the stretch.