Headlines

  • Bobby Jenks Passes Away
  • Braves Release Alex Verdugo
  • Clarke Schmidt Expected To Undergo Tommy John Surgery
  • Top 40 Trade Candidates For The 2025 Deadline
  • Rays Reinstate Ha-Seong Kim
  • Yankees Have Shown Interest In Ryan McMahon
  • Previous
  • Next
Register
Login
  • Hoops Rumors
  • Pro Football Rumors
  • Pro Hockey Rumors

MLB Trade Rumors

Remove Ads
  • Home
  • Teams
    • AL East
      • Baltimore Orioles
      • Boston Red Sox
      • New York Yankees
      • Tampa Bay Rays
      • Toronto Blue Jays
    • AL Central
      • Chicago White Sox
      • Cleveland Guardians
      • Detroit Tigers
      • Kansas City Royals
      • Minnesota Twins
    • AL West
      • Houston Astros
      • Los Angeles Angels
      • Oakland Athletics
      • Seattle Mariners
      • Texas Rangers
    • NL East
      • Atlanta Braves
      • Miami Marlins
      • New York Mets
      • Philadelphia Phillies
      • Washington Nationals
    • NL Central
      • Chicago Cubs
      • Cincinnati Reds
      • Milwaukee Brewers
      • Pittsburgh Pirates
      • St. Louis Cardinals
    • NL West
      • Arizona Diamondbacks
      • Colorado Rockies
      • Los Angeles Dodgers
      • San Diego Padres
      • San Francisco Giants
  • About
    • MLB Trade Rumors
    • Tim Dierkes
    • Writing team
    • Advertise
    • Archives
  • Contact
  • Tools
    • 2025 Trade Deadline Outlook Series
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Agency Database
  • NBA/NFL/NHL
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors
  • App
  • Chats
Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

Rangers Designate Taylor Hearn, Select Alex Speas

By Steve Adams | July 19, 2023 at 10:09am CDT

The Rangers announced Wednesday morning that they’ve designated left-hander Taylor Hearn for assignment. His spot on the 40-man roster will go to right-hander Alex Speas, whose contract has been selected from Triple-A Round Rock. Texas optioned lefty John King to Triple-A in order to open a spot for Speas on the active roster.

Now 28 years old, Hearn was acquired in the 2018 deadline deal that sent reliever Keone Kela to the Pirates. The southpaw was a mainstay on the Rangers’ pitching staff from 2021-22, splitting time between the rotation and the bullpen. While the overall 4.89 ERA he posted in 204 1/3 innings during that time hardly stands out, Hearn has pronounced splits between his work as a starter and a reliever.

In 110 1/3 career innings out of the rotation, Hearn has been rocked for a 6.36 ERA. Like many pitchers, he’s had particularly rough struggled when turning a lineup over for a third time; opponents have batted .343/.438/.567 against him in such situations.

Out of the bullpen, however, Hearn has looked like a different and quite serviceable pitcher. He’s tallied 118 2/3 innings of relief work in the big leagues, logging a 3.94 ERA and fanning exactly one quarter of his opponents. His 11.2% walk rate out of the ’pen is well north of the league average, but Hearn has demonstrated an ability to miss bats and limit damage while averaging close to 96 mph with his heater in short stints.

He’s worked primarily out of the bullpen in Triple-A this season, posting a 3.66 ERA and a very strong 30.2% strikeout rate. Command has continued to plague Hearn in Round Rock though, evidenced by a 13.2% walk rate plus another four plunked batters in his 39 1/3 innings there.

Hearn is optionable for the remainder of the current season. That, combined with solid career marks in the bullpen, plus velocity on his fastball and a history of missing bats, could certainly lead to trade interest in the southpaw.

The Rangers will have a week to trade Hearn or attempt to pass him through outright waivers. He’s earning $1.5MM this year and has at least two more seasons of arbitration eligibility remaining, so it’s feasible but certainly not guaranteed that he’d be claimed.

Taking Hearn’s spot on the roster is the 25-year-old Speas, a potential late-inning powerhouse whose trio of plus or better pitches is at times undercut by a lack of command. FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen ranked the flamethrowing righty 14th among Texas farmhands earlier this month, touting his “vicious” slider’s “absurd” movement. He’s throwing that slider or his low-90s cutter a combined 85% of the time in the minors this year, Longenhagen notes, due in part because of his struggles locating a four-seamer that can routinely hit 102 mph.

A second-round pick by the Rangers back in 2016, Speas has a ridiculous 1.00 ERA in 36 innings between Double-A and Triple-A this season. He’s fanned 40.4% of his opponents against an 11.3% walk rate that represents a career-low. The walk rate would likely be higher if Speas leaned on his heater more regularly, but for now the emphasis on his slider and cutter has proven a recipe for success.

It’s increasingly common for relievers to throw their breaking pitches more than their fastballs, and while Speas is an extreme example of that, his ability to do so with success in the upper minors positions him as a potential late-inning weapon for manager Bruce Bochy.

Share 0 Retweet 0 Send via email0

Texas Rangers Transactions Alex Speas John King Taylor Hearn

Padres Sign Óscar Mercado To Minor League Deal
Main
Braves Select Seth Elledge, Release Danny Young
View Comments (10)
Post a Comment

10 Comments

  1. mlb fan

    2 years ago

    “Chick” must be devastated.

    Reply
  2. No Soup For Yu!

    2 years ago

    So happy for Speas. Stepped away from baseball for a year, only to come back and make the bigs. Hoping he sticks around.

    5
    Reply
  3. In Seager/Hader We Trust > the 70 MM DH Ohtani

    2 years ago

    Long overdue! Now, promote Chase Lee.

    Reply
    • trog

      2 years ago

      Chase needs to show more control before he gets promoted, especially since he won’t overpower with his stuff. Really excited about Speas!!

      1
      Reply
  4. jimmyz

    2 years ago

    I hope the Bucs claim Hearn and bring him back to the organization. They need some left handed relievers among many other things.

    1
    Reply
  5. ElGaupo77

    2 years ago

    Tyler Hearn for Travis Swaggerty.

    Reply
    • jimmyz

      2 years ago

      As a Pirates fan I hope Swaggerty stays with the Bucs but that’s not a bad framework for a trade and could help both teams out.

      2
      Reply
  6. fathead0507

    2 years ago

    Should have released King .. BP pitcher

    2
    Reply
  7. juanwood3rd

    2 years ago

    No chance he’s claimed, he will be traded before that happens. I don’t see the front office letting him slip through the cracks. He’s a ceiling is good to great BP piece with two years of control. Go Rangers!

    1
    Reply
  8. kidnova

    2 years ago

    Fantastic debut for Speas. Great story and hopefully he can continue to do well with the big club.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Please login to leave a reply.

Log in Register

    Top Stories

    Bobby Jenks Passes Away

    Braves Release Alex Verdugo

    Clarke Schmidt Expected To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

    Top 40 Trade Candidates For The 2025 Deadline

    Rays Reinstate Ha-Seong Kim

    Yankees Have Shown Interest In Ryan McMahon

    Brandon Woodruff To Start For Brewers On Sunday

    Royals Interested In Bryan Reynolds

    Rangers Option Josh Jung

    Kevin Pillar Announces Retirement

    Braves Place Spencer Schwellenbach On IL With Elbow Fracture

    Giants Exercise 2026 Option On Manager Bob Melvin

    Yordan Alvarez Shut Down Due To Setback With Hand Injury

    Astros Place Jeremy Peña On Injured List With Fractured Rib

    Tucker Barnhart To Retire

    Tyler Mahle To Be Sidelined Beyond Trade Deadline

    Reds Release Jeimer Candelario

    Dave Parker Passes Away

    Griffin Canning Diagnosed With Ruptured Achilles

    Pirates Reportedly Have Very Few Untouchable Players At Trade Deadline

    Recent

    Giants Place Erik Miller On IL, Select Scott Alexander

    Yankees Sign Jeimer Candelario To Minor League Deal

    Giants Activate Matt Chapman, DFA Sergio Alcantara

    Nationals Reinstate Mason Thompson From 60-Day IL

    Bobby Jenks Passes Away

    Rangers To Sign Rowdy Tellez To Minor League Deal

    Yankees Likely To Promote Cam Schlittler

    Astros Sign Hector Neris

    Dodgers Not Planning To Add Third Base Help Before Deadline

    Braves Release Alex Verdugo

    MLBTR Newsletter - Hot stove highlights in your inbox, five days a week

    Latest Rumors & News

    Latest Rumors & News

    • Sandy Alcantara Rumors
    • Luis Robert Rumors
    • Alex Bregman Rumors

     

    Trade Rumors App for iOS and Android App Store Google Play

    MLBTR Features

    MLBTR Features

    • Remove Ads, Support Our Writers
    • Front Office Originals
    • Front Office Fantasy Baseball
    • MLBTR Podcast
    • Trade Deadline Outlook Series
    • 2025-26 MLB Free Agent List
    • Contract Tracker
    • Transaction Tracker
    • Extension Tracker
    • Agency Database
    • MLBTR On Twitter
    • MLBTR On Facebook
    • Team Facebook Pages
    • How To Set Up Notifications For Breaking News
    • Hoops Rumors
    • Pro Football Rumors
    • Pro Hockey Rumors

    Rumors By Team

    • Angels Rumors
    • Astros Rumors
    • Athletics Rumors
    • Blue Jays Rumors
    • Braves Rumors
    • Brewers Rumors
    • Cardinals Rumors
    • Cubs Rumors
    • Diamondbacks Rumors
    • Dodgers Rumors
    • Giants Rumors
    • Guardians Rumors
    • Mariners Rumors
    • Marlins Rumors
    • Mets Rumors
    • Nationals Rumors
    • Orioles Rumors
    • Padres Rumors
    • Phillies Rumors
    • Pirates Rumors
    • Rangers Rumors
    • Rays Rumors
    • Red Sox Rumors
    • Reds Rumors
    • Rockies Rumors
    • Royals Rumors
    • Tigers Rumors
    • Twins Rumors
    • White Sox Rumors
    • Yankees Rumors

    Navigation

    • Sitemap
    • Archives
    • RSS/Twitter Feeds By Team

    MLBTR INFO

    • Advertise
    • About
    • Commenting Policy
    • Privacy Policy

    Connect

    • Contact Us
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS Feed

    MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

    Do not Sell or Share My Personal Information

    hide arrows scroll to top

    Register

    Desktop Version | Switch To Mobile Version