Outfielder Travis Jankowski has cleared waivers and elected free agency, reports Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times. There wasn’t any indication the Rays removed him from their 40-man roster but it appears they quietly put him on waivers recently. This drops their 40-man roster count from 39 to 38.
Jankowski, 34 later this month, was acquired from the White Sox at the end of April. Tampa had a number of outfielders on the injured list and grabbed Jankowski as a veteran fill-in. Unfortunately, Jankowski himself hit the IL a couple of weeks later, landing there on May 15th due to a left groin strain. He started a rehab assignment a few days ago but it seems the Rays didn’t want to put him back on the roster, so they put him on waivers instead.
That’s likely due to their outfield getting healthier in recent weeks. Josh Lowe and Jake Mangum were both on the IL at the time Jankowski was acquired but each of them is now back on the active roster. Those two have slotted next to Kameron Misner in the club’s regular outfield mix with Christopher Morel also factoring in. The Rays considered that group strong enough that they optioned Chandler Simpson last week and don’t have room for Jankowski either.
Unlike Simpson, Jankowski is a veteran with over eight years of big league service time. That means he can’t be optioned to the minors without his consent. It also means he has the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency. Those factors have led him to the open market today.
He will now look for his next opportunity, presumably with a club that has a better path to playing time in its outfield. Jankowski has been a strong defender throughout his career. In 3,597 innings on the grass, he has accrued 29 Defensive Runs Saved and 33 Outs Above Average. He can also rack up double-digit steals if given regular playing time in a season.
The offense has been more mercurial. He was around league average with the Rangers in 2023, helping that club surge to a World Series championship. However, he was below average before that and has dropped down again since. On the whole, he has a career batting line of .236/.318/.305. That translates to a wRC+ of 76, indicating he’s been 24% below league average for his career. Since he cleared waivers, he’ll probably have to settle for a minor league deal.
Photo courtesy of Vincent Carchietta, Imagn Images
Sometimes a bro just has to realize his limitations. He’s a 34 year old defensive replacement/ pinch runner, and while there might be a team willing to keep signing him to minor league contracts, it might be time to take his career 75 OPS+ and look for a 3rd base coaching job.
Might still be worth a shot in the Mexican Baseball League, squeeze out some more money before retiring.
No, he’ll be signed again by the Sox, who don’t know who to keep, who to flip and who to dfa.
there needs to be some sort of veterans player pool or free agent squad that all 30 teams have access to where you can just rent a guy for a few days or weeks and then return him to the pool when finished. the current system is to sign, designate, release, elect free agency, rinse repeat..
Blah: They could call it The Mercenary Pool.
avenger, love it.
Solid career. Never a star, but generally a productive player wherever he has been. He won’t win you a title, but he will help you win a title.
Hoping some team needs him and picks him up for the rest of the year.
Say what you will, but he is clutch. Had some huge hits for the Rangers during their ‘23 run. I’d love to have him back on the roster to sub the outfield.
He’s trying to hang on to get his 10yr pension. He currently has 7.138 years of service time.
Come on home, Fred!
Nah, he’s no better than Heyward at this point
I’d do it just to shake it up a lil… idk.
We do need some movement, but we can’t rely on it anytime soon. In the meantime, they need to move arraez to leadoff and hit nando 2nd. We have to lengthen this lineup, and I don’t get Shildt’s stubbornness at this point. It’s bordering on arrogance.
Arraez
Tatis
Merrill
Machado
Sheets
Bogaerts
Cronenworth
C
LF
Need our stars hitting with guys on base.
Agreed, I like it. *double shaka*
Tyler Wade has that utility/PR roster spot locked up.
ACK – today, Wade has LF locked up so, there is a roster spot for him. Lockridge is currently blocking Freddie and well, I’d take Freddie over Lockridge until he can start hitting.
2023 World Series Champion. 7 Games, 2 singles and 1 double. BB% of 100%, ISO of .111. Slash line of .333/.400/.444 and a wRC+ of 138. No playoff bound team wants that?
Jankowski is obviously a 4th OF type. That being said, he chips in a hit every now and again, plays good “D” and by all accounts is a good clubhouse guy.
When I watch him he always surprises me by being a very useful player. If one of my starting OFs goes down in the middle of a season, I’ll take Travis Jankowski as the emergency replacement all 7 days of the week over several other halfway decent options.
Make no mistake, one of them will.. He’s the consummate professional. There aren’t that many guys like this. A lot of them are catchers.
Old York: After just a 7 game sample?
Better and a helluva lot cheaper than the Pirates latest mistake, Tommy Pham.
A smart, heady baserunner too. I might just roster him and make him my 4th OF/pinch runner.
Holy hell, for some reason hearing Travis Jankowski is about to turn 34 just made me feel so old.
Let me be the first to welcome him to Anaheim.