The Rangers announced this morning that they’ve signed first baseman/outfielder Mark Canha to a minor league deal with an invite to big league Spring Training.
It’s something of a birthday present for Canha, who turns 37 today. The veteran had a rough season in Kansas City last year, slashing just .212/.272/.265 in 46 games with the Royals. He suffered an adductor strain and an elbow injury that sent him to the injured list for two separate stints, and after a trade deadline that saw Kansas City add Mike Yastrzemski, Adam Frazier, and Randal Grichuk to the roster the team had little room to squeeze him back onto the roster when he was healthy enough to return. That left him to be released in mid-August of last year, and he did not catch on with a new club before the end of the year.
Coming off such a difficult 2025 campaign, it’s hardly a shock that Canha had to settle for a minor league deal. Whether last year’s lackluster performance was simply an injury-marred blip for the veteran or a larger signal of age-related decline remains to be seen, but the Rangers are interested enough in finding out to at least bring Canha into camp and see what he has left. That could prove to be a savvy move for the Rangers, given Canha’s long history of success in the majors. The veteran has posted a wRC+ of 101 or better in every season of his career where he’s taken at least 200 plate appearances. From 2018 to 2024, Canha slashed .253/.361/.415 with a wRC+ of 120, a 19.7% strikeout rate and an 11.0% walk rate. While he’s hit 20 homers just once in his career (during the juiced ball era back in 2019), he’s consistently posted high on-base percentages thanks to elite plate discipline.
Canha need not play up to his career numbers in order to be a contributor for the Rangers this year, of course. If he can simply deliver a slash line similar to that which he posted for the Tigers and Giants in 2024, when he hit .242/.344/.346 (101 wRC+), that would be enough to make him a worthy addition to the Rangers’ roster. The team relied heavily on Jake Burger at first base in 2026. He brings considerable power potential but posted a wRC+ of just 89 last season. At DH, Joc Pederson returns for his age-34 campaign after a disastrous 2026 where he hit just .181/.285/.328 with a wRC+ of 76. Even at his best, Pederson carries a substantial platoon split. That could make someone like Canha, who had a 123 wRC+ against lefties in 2024, a useful contributor even if both Pederson and Burger return to form this year.
As good of a fit as Canha would be if he finds his swing again, he’ll have competition for a bench job in Texas. Ezequiel Duran, Cody Freeman, Sam Haggerty, and Michael Helman all offer more positional versatility than Canha can at this point, as he’s entirely restricted to first base, DH, and the corner outfield spots. Justin Foscue is a right-handed hitter already on the 40-man who can handle second base in addition to first, and fellow non-roster invitees like Nick Pratto and Jonah Bride could also be in the mix for a spot with a strong performance in Spring Training.
All of these players on invites have hope despite repeated failure at the big league level
Canha had a bad year last year but as the article notes, he’s been an above average hitter every year he gets 200 PAs. It’s a minor league deal – if he sucks, they cut him
MMR
Another fan who seems to hate baseball players
It’s so weird
I don’t hate it.
Can’t believe Canha is still playing. Good for him.
He’s another player I wish Boston brought in. Righty bat and a good glove in left who can also play first. While he’s getting older and likely lost a step, I just remember how great he looked in Fenway as a Met a couple years back. Injuries can happen and having Canha in spring training would have been nice.
Dude dope
Hopefully,he’s still got something left in the tank
Will be another good story, if he can contribute at MLB level again.
37 years old, decade in the league, former rule 5 draft pick. Very impressive, keep kicking it Mark
Another morning glass of wine for Mr Deeds writing this over dramatized article
More wine
And yes to Mark Canha!
And yet, after deeds runs through a whole box he is still better at this than you. Guessing he’d run circles around you minus being the jerk in the circle.
This is the best picture they could find of this guy?
Bro will make the opening day roster for sure
He can always be the clubhouse chef if the whole making the roster thing doesn’t work out.
Mark the Swiss army knife Canha. Hope he makes the big club, for his sake.
Helped the Crew win several games for sure!
Reporting that Joc Pederson had a disastrous 2026 certainly doesn’t bode well for Joc Pederson’s 2026. Just saying.