SEPTEMBER 21: Arihara has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Triple-A Round Rock, the team announced. He’ll remain in the organization and look to pitch his way back onto the big league roster.
SEPTEMBER 19: The Rangers announced that right-hander Kohei Arihara has been designated for assignment. The move opens up a roster spot for Mike Foltynewicz, who returns to action after being reinstated from the COVID-related injury list.
Arihara was the Rangers’ biggest free agent expenditure of the 2020-21 offseason, as Texas spent a total of $7.44MM to obtain the righty on a two-year contract. $1.24MM of that money went towards a posting fee to the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (Arihara’s NPB club), while Arihara himself received $6.2MM in salary — $3.6MM this season, and $2.4MM in 2022.
Now, it all looks like something of a sunk cost for the Rangers, since it seems quite unlikely that another team would absorb that cost by claiming Arihara off waivers. If Arihara signed elsewhere on a minor league contract, a new team would only owe him the prorated portion of a minimum salary, leaving Texas on the hook for the rest of the money.
The 29-year-old Arihara began his MLB career in impressive fashion, posting a 2.21 ERA over his first four starts and 20 1/3 innings. He struggled badly over his next three starts, however, due to what was eventually revealed as the development of an aneurysm in his throwing shoulder. Arihara underwent surgery to remove that aneurysm in May and didn’t return to the Rangers until September, with a 6.75 ERA coming in Arihara’s 12 post-surgery innings.
Given Arihara’s injury problems and the small sample size, it is hard to really evaluate his first MLB campaign. He had only a 13.5% strikeout rate, though he wasn’t a big strikeout pitcher even in his prime years in Japan. The righty’s 7.3% walk rate was also somewhat similar to his NPB numbers, but Arihara’s biggest issue was the home run ball. Arihara has given up 11 home runs over his 40 2/3 frames in the Show; for comparison’s sake, he gave up 89 homers over 836 innings with the Fighters.
While Arihara could clear waivers and accept an outright assignment to the Rangers’ farm system, today’s move could also very well spell the end of his time with the organization. Despite Arihara’s struggles, he did attract attention from such teams as the Padres and Red Sox last winter. Considering that Texas would be footing the bill, it wouldn’t be surprising to see either San Diego or Boston take a flier on Arihara on a minors deal.
Foltynewicz returns after just short of a month on the COVID-IL. The right-hander was also an offseason addition, joining the Rangers on a one-year, $2MM free agent deal and then delivering a 5.54 ERA over 130 innings. Foltynewicz’s 6.0% walk rate is a career best, though his 16.5% strikeout rate is a career worst and most of his Statcast numbers are decidedly below average.
Like to see the Padres claim him. I was hoping they’d sign him or Sugano in the off season.
He’s quite possibly the worst pitcher in the entire league. If you’re a Padres fan you definitely don’t want him on your team lol. And claiming him? You want them to not only sign him but claim him off waivers so they have to pay him millions?? You’re crazy!
he might not even be the worst one on the Rangers…
Arihara has an 8.06 xERA please tell me who’s worse?? Have you ever watched him pitch? It’s blatantly obvious he doesn’t belong on a big league mound. And this dude wants to pay him millions lol
The dude replacing him has pitched the same this season and Kohei is still under contract for next year as well. Smart.
And the entire Baltimore starting staff has pitched worse this year.. minus Means
im a Phillies fan. this team has Spencer Howard in its rotation. the guy gets through 3 IP without imploding and it’s a win. Arihara has made 10 appearances in the Majors. i would have given him some more leash.
You clearly haven’t watched Arihara pitch. He has no business being in the major leagues. You really think they’d cut him if they thought he had any chance of being good next year? He’s got absolutely nothing to get big league hitters out lol
I agree. He has nothing on his pitches. Even before the injury. At least Foltynewicz gives innings. Who cares if he loses -18 games. Please someone take Arihara.
I have.
Saw him throw a game against the Angels. He absolutely throttled them. 6 shutout. He doesn’t pitch like most MLB guys. But he had a 7 or 8 pitch mix & they all looked like viable MLB pitches.
I would love to see Cashman somehow land him. I don’t think he will be an ace, or whatever. However, I could certainly see him being a solid mid-rotation guy.
Mid rotation guy lol no one will claim this bum and he’ll be back in Japan next year.
C’mon he’s held the Ms th 3 or less over 5 a couple time at least
Mid rotation guy?? You are out of your mind lol dude is an absolute bum
A team like Baltimore might as well take a flyer and try him for the minimum next season during ST see if he can hang with different coaching in his ear
Red Sox were one of the finalists for Arihara, thankfully Bloom backed off on him and signed the much better and much cheaper Sawamura instead.
Just what Baltimore needs more losers
I don’t watch much baseball outside of the Yanks. But I happened to catch him twice. Like I said, against the Angels he was throwing 7 or 8 pitches & absolutely flummoxed them. Caught part of a start against Seattle & it was the same thing.
Looks like I simply caught his two best outings or something. Too bad. I liked how he threw.
Arihara’s numbers by a catcher
Trevino: ERA 3.18 WHIP 0.97
Heim: ERA 8.05 WHIP 1.56
If the Rangers had Trevino behind the plate for Arihara all the time, things could have been different.
Those numbers with Trevino were mostly pre-injury at the beginning of the year before there was a book on Arihara.
He had 5 starts each with Trevino and Heim. 2 out of 3 starts after the surgery were with Trevino.
I like how you’re arguing he’s the worst in the league when the guy coming off the IL is arguably far worse. Arihara had a decent run before his injury, but he doesn’t have enough IPs to really have much of an accurate eval at this point. He was never an overpowering pitcher in Japan, and that’s with the different ball. Regression was expected, but someone will no doubt take a flyer on him to see what he can do.
But really…? Foltz has put up comparable numbers… except over nearly 100 more innings. Also, pitchers like Griffin Jax, Spenser Watkins, Keegan Akin, and Randy Dobnak all exist. Arihara’s ceiling is probably SP4 at the highest. Not saying he’s going to be a stud, but he is certainly worth a look over some of the pitchers mentioned above and in a COVID-impacted season where AAA and even AA pitchers are called up to get shelled for a 7-inning game and then sent back down.
They already signed Arrieta. Clearly talent level doesn’t matter that much
Why would they want him or Foltynewicz they both suck
Why claim garbage for millions of dollars dumb move
Coming to SF next season to replace Disco as the bounce back
Useless transaction. Why? One bad pitcher for a horrible one. Just DFA both!!!⚾️
Folty can still eat a few more innings and keep the Rangers from having to send out a young arm whose pitch count they’re trying to limit. Arihara gets knocked around so much though that the Rangers have to use their entire bullpen to rescue him before he throws 100 pitches in 3 innings.
I had to re-read Folty’s stats. He’s given up 34 HR in only 130 innings. Ouch.
What I’ve noticed about Folty, as a Rangers fan, is that he seems to get rattled easily. Don’t know if that has been his history, or is it something more recent.
Well there was that time he gave up 7 runs in a third of an inning in the 2019 NLDS against the Cardinals
Yeah that’ was pretty much his history with Atlanta, He would lose focus and implode.
He needs chiropractor adjustment after each game. Watching the balls fly by ⚾️
Getting bumped from the roster for Folty has to be a low point.
Arihara seemed very uncomfortable when Heim was catching, and the numbers tell.
Arihara’s performance by catchers:
Trevino: 22.2IP, ERA 3.18, WHIP 0.95
Heim: 18IP, ERA 8.15, WHIP 1.58
Check out his Home/Road splits, they really paint a picture of an actually-decent pitcher who just got worked over in Texas.
l hope he pitched his last ball like lt was his last ball because it certainly was his last ball.
Home ERA: 10.19
Road ERA: 3.91
Umm, any contender with a pitcher-friendly park should grab him and put him in the pen asap
The Dodgers will get him and he’ll be the Next Big Thing.
Or the Rays.
It’s not like Texas’ new stadium is Camden Yards though
The Angels can make Ohtani his mentor and try to bring him along.
Ohtani was his teammate in Japan he knows he sucks
Interesting… Love to hear his assessment on your skills
I think he is another Drew Smyly to the Rangers.
Mom: “we’ve got Koji Uehara at home”
Roster juggling with the likes of Folty and Arihara shows how embarrassing the Rangers have become. 5 years since any meaningful baseball has been played and this is where they are at.