Rangers quickly reunite with two discarded familiar faces on minor-league deals

The Texas Rangers brought back outfielder Jarred Kelenic and right-hander Joe Ross on minor-league deals on Friday, according to the MLB.com transaction tracker. Both players elected free agency on Wednesday after being outrighted off the roster.

Texas signed Kelenic, 26, to a minor-league deal early last month and then selected his contract on June 19. In just 10 plate appearances across seven games with the Rangers, Kelenic went 1-for-8 with a single, two walks and five strikeouts before being designated for assignment on June 29.

Kelenic, MLB Pipeline's No. 4 overall prospect pre-2021, absolutely dominated Triple-A pitching in 14 games with the Round Rock Express, slashing .321/.419/.585 with three home runs and 11 RBI over 63 plate appearances last month. He hasn't been able to live up to his potential as a former top prospect, but his numbers with the Express and some of his underlying metrics show he can perform much better than he has throughout his MLB career (.211/.283/.372 in 433 games). He may be a Quad-A player, but he's still a solid depth piece for Texas to keep in Triple-A in case an injury creates a need for an outfielder.

As for Ross, the right-hander signed a minor-league deal with the Rangers in late May. Texas selected his contract on June 13. In eight innings over five appearances with the Rangers, Ross allowed five runs (four earned) on nine hits, two home runs, and two walks with five strikeouts. Like Kelenic, Ross was designated for assignment on June 29.

Ross, 33, has nine years of MLB experience, with a career 4.38 ERA over 580 innings. He spent his first six seasons with the Washington Nationals. In addition to the Nationals and Rangers, he's played for the Philadelphia Phillies, Milwaukee Brewers, and Arizona Diamondbacks.

Kelenic, Ross give Rangers needed depth

It's nice to see the Rangers bring back Kelenic and Ross, as both are solid depth pieces given their MLB experience. Both likely won't be major contributors to the club or anything, but they can be called up if the team needs help due to an injury.

With Wyatt Langford and Corey Seager on the IL, one more injury to a position player, particularly an outfielder, could clear a spot for Kelenic to return to the majors with Texas. Meanwhile, the Rangers are operating without a true five-man rotation after Jack Leiter landed on the injured list last month with an ankle injury that required surgery, so there's a good chance the pitching staff will become exhausted, and then the Rangers will call up Ross because they need a fresh arm.

However, being off the 40-man roster could keep Kelenic and Ross from returning to the Rangers' big-league squad. Regardless, it was smart of Texas to bring them back as depth players.

Building depth has been a serious priority for Chris Young of late. He's also recently signed veteran lefty Marco Gonzales, right-hander Austin Voth, and former Dodgers infielder Santiago Espinal to minor league deals. These guys might never see the light of day, but if a need arises, the Rangers might be happy they have them to call upon.

Add us as a preferred source on Google

Follow