Rangers Notes: Soria Sent to Tigers for Young Arms

Former All-Star reliever Joakim Soria had converted 17 of his 19 potential save opportunities for the Rangers this season.

The Rangers traded closer Joakim Soria to Detroit on Wednesday in exchange for right-handed pitchers Corey Knebel and Jake Thompson, both of whom are highly-regarded prospects from the North Texas area.

Soria took over as the Rangers’ closer after the offseason departure of Joe Nathan, who signed a two-year deal with the Tigers in December but has struggled thus far with effectiveness and consistency.

In 40 appearances out of the Detroit bullpen this season, Nathan has already blown five save chances while posting an ERA (5.73) far higher than his 2.88 career average. Although he will retain the closer’s role for now, the addition of Soria could put Nathan’s status in jeopardy.

With Soria out of the picture in Texas, the early choice to replace him appears to be right-hander Neftali Feliz, who was the Rangers’ closer during their pennant-winning seasons of 2010 and 2011.

Feliz had been the favorite to take over for Nathan this spring, but the job instead went to Soria when Feliz was hampered by command issues and Tanner Scheppers moved into the starting rotation.

As for the players Texas acquired in return for Soria, Knebel is a 22-year-old University of Texas product who will report to Triple-A Round Rock while Thompson is a native of Rockwall who will join the rotation at Double-A Frisco.

“Corey Knebel is a big physical right-handed guy with back-of-the-bullpen speed and demeanor,” Texas general manager Jon Daniels said. “A power fastball-curveball combo, a lot of success at [Texas.]”

Daniels described the 20-year-old Thompson as a “physical kind of guy, built for innings, a four-pitch mix … Good life on the fastball and a good slider. A good makeup.”

Taking Soria’s spot on the active roster was right-hander Nate Adcock, who had his contract purchased from Round Rock before Thursday’s game in New York.

Yankees, A’s Take Series from Texas

The Rangers continued their summer-long free fall in the American League West standings by losing five out of seven games over the last week, winning the openers against New York and Oakland before losing both series.

Joakim Soria earned what would be his final save in a Texas uniform last Monday, closing the door on a 4-2 victory in which Miles Mikolas pitched into the eighth inning and benefitted from a three-run rally in the sixth.

Neither team scored through the first 12 frames of Tuesday’s game, and while the Rangers briefly went ahead on a solo homer from J.P. Arencibia in the thirteenth, the Yankees tied it in their half of the inning before capturing a 2-1 walk-off win in the fourteenth.

New York won by the same score in a rain-shortened affair on Wednesday, then secured the series victory by beating Texas, 4-2, in Thursday afternoon’s finale.

The Rangers welcomed the division-leading A’s to Arlington with a 4-1 win Friday at Globe Life Park, buoyed by a strong performance from spot-starter Jerome Williams as well as the first big-league save by Neftali Feliz in nearly three years.

Oakland pounded four homers on the way to a 5-1 win over Texas on Saturday, and Mikolas was roughed up Sunday as the Athletics took the finale by a 9-2 score, improving upon what was already the best record (65-39) in baseball.

Nadel Receives Ford C. Frick Award

Radio voice Eric Nadel was honored in Cooperstown on Saturday as the 2014 recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award, given annually by the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum to recognize excellence in broadcasting.

Nadel, who has been the team’s primary radio announcer for the past 35 seasons, becomes the first member of the Rangers organization to receive the award, and he expressed gratitude to both the ballclub and its fan base in his acceptance speech.

“As a team, we still haven’t won the big one, but we won this award together,” Nadel said. “And the pain and frustration we have experienced has brought us closer together … I can honestly say that I am proud to be a Texas Ranger, and I know you are proud to be Texas Rangers fans.”

Also honored on Saturday were writer Roger Angell and broadcaster Joe Garagiola, and Sunday’s induction ceremony included Bobby Cox, Tom Glavine, Tony La Russa, Greg Maddux, Frank Thomas and Joe Torre.

Soto Back to DL; Adduci, Martinez Return

Continuing to make injury-related roster moves at an historic rate, the Rangers were forced to place both catcher Geovany Soto and outfielder Jake Smolinski on the 15-day disabled list over the last week.

Soto, who had just returned from the 60-day DL on July 22 following knee surgery this spring, was sent back to the disabled list Tuesday with a right groin strain, and right-hander Nick Martinez was activated in order to make the start that evening in New York.

The day before, outfielder/first baseman Jim Adduci had been activated from the DL while right-handed reliever Matt West was optioned to Triple-A, and veteran starter Jerome Williams had his contract purchased from Round Rock on Friday as Jake Smolinski was put on the disabled list with a bone bruise.

Right-hander Justin Marks was released in order to clear a 40-man roster spot for Williams, and southpaw reliever Joe Ortiz was activated from the 60-day DL and optioned to Double-A Frisco.

Rangers Notes: Cactus League Update No. 3

Jurickson Profar, the successor to Ian Kinsler at second base, will now be out up to three months.

What has already been an injury-riddled spring continued for the Rangers over the weekend, as  it was announced on Sunday that second baseman Jurickson Profar will miss up to 12 weeks with a torn muscle in his right shoulder.

Profar had dealt with flexor tendinitis for the first few weeks of camp before having his wisdom teeth removed in mid-March, and the new injury apparently occurred while he was trying to turn a double play Saturday afternoon against Kansas City.

The 21-year-old was limited to designated hitter duties through much of the early Cactus League schedule and had only recently returned to big-league action on the field, taking over as the everyday second baseman for Texas following the offseason trade of Ian Kinsler.

“We’ll get somebody there to play,” Texas manager Ron Washington said. “We will have a second baseman. We’ve got guys in camp that can play there.

“In the meantime, I’m sure [general manager Jon Daniels] will be out there looking. We’re okay. Believe me, we’re okay. We’ll miss Profar, but we’ll move on and win some ballgames.”

The most likely in-house candidates for the job would seem to be veteran infielders Adam Rosales and Josh Wilson, who were already competing for one of the final backup spots on the Texas roster.

Wilson, a non-roster invitee, has played in parts of six big-league seasons with seven different teams, setting career-highs as a member of the 2010 Mariners with 108 games, 82 hits and 25 RBIs. Like Rosales, Wilson is a versatile defender whose main contributions will be on the field instead of at the plate.

Other internal options to replace Profar include journeyman Brent Lillibridge, Japanese League veteran Kensuke Tanaka and top prospect Rougned Odor, though the 20-year-old Odor would be a long shot and seems destined to start the season at Double-A Frisco.

Lillibridge and Tanaka were both signed to minor-league contracts in December and were with the club as non-roster invitees, and while each had been returned to minor-league camp within the last week, Tanaka was added back to the spring roster this morning.

As for Profar, he won’t require surgery but will be relegated to limited baseball activities for the next four to six weeks, and the Rangers hope to have him back in big-league the lineup by June or July.

“He should be a weapon for us in the second half of the season,” assistant general manager Thad Levine said Sunday. “Maybe a little bit earlier.”

Further adding to the ballclub’s injury woes was the announcement Monday that catcher Geovany Soto will need surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee, keeping him on the shelf for 10 to 12 weeks and leaving Texas without its No. 1 backstop just days before the season opener.

J.P. Arencibia and Robinson Chirinos had been expected to compete for the backup spot behind Soto as it was, so his injury would appear to mean they could both now make the Opening Day roster.

In addition, Yu Darvish – long penciled in to start next Monday’s opener against the Phillies – was scratched from his scheduled Cactus League appearance Friday due to neck stiffness, and the Rangers may have to consider alternate plans if he is not able to recover in time.

Finally, Engel Beltre was hoping to make the team as a fourth outfielder behind Shin-Soo Choo, Leonys Martin and Alex Rios, but he will instead open the year on the disabled list after suffering a broken right tibia.

Scheppers to Rotation; Soria Named Closer

After making a name for himself as a dominant setup reliever last season, right-hander Tanner Scheppers has won a spot in the Texas starting rotation for the upcoming campaign, bumping projected starter Alexi Ogando back into a bullpen role.

Scheppers has looked impressive in his spring auditions so far (including three starts and one relief appearance), tossing 14-plus inning with an earned run average of 3.07 and leading the team with 14 Cactus League strikeouts.

Neftali Feliz, on the other hand, was supposed to take over for Joe Nathan as the Rangers’ closer, but he has struggled with both velocity and effectiveness this spring. Ron Washington announced Saturday that the job will instead go to Joakim Soria, who racked up 160 saves in his five years with Kansas City.

Contreras, Tepesch Won’t Make Rotation

While Scheppers is headed to the rotation, the final two spots are still up for grabs, and fringe candidates Jose Contreras and Nick Tepesch were informed last week that they will not break camp with the big-league club.

Contreras, 42, was signed to a minor-league deal by Texas in early December, and he is now said to be considering retirement after being offered a re-assignment to minor-league camp by the Rangers.

Tepesch, who made 17 starts for Texas in 2013, was one of four players optioned to Triple-A Round Rock last Monday, along with right-handers Cory Burns and Miles Mikolas and infielder Andy Parrino.

Six other players – the aforementioned Kensuke Tanaka, right-hander Daniel Bard, catchers Patrick Cantwell and Brett Nicholas and outfielders Bryan Petersen and Brad Snyder – were re-assigned to minor-league camp.

Rangers Notes: Feliz an Early Favorite to Fill Closer’s Role

Neftali Feliz collected 72 saves across his two seasons as the Texas closer and was named American League Rookie of the Year in 2010.

While the Rangers have revamped the top of their lineup with the additions of Shin-Soo Choo and Prince Fielder this offseason, they’ve also been forced to part ways with one of the game’s most reliable closers in the form of veteran right-hander Joe Nathan.

The 39-year-old Nathan agreed to a $20 million deal with the Detroit Tigers in early December, leaving Texas without a clear-cut option for ninth-inning save situations heading into spring training.

The good news is that the Rangers’ bullpen is already stacked with potential candidates to replace Nathan as closer, including former All-Stars Neftali Feliz and Joakim Soria as well as hard-throwing righty Tanner Scheppers, who led the club with 76 appearances last season.

Scheppers has indicated a desire to shift out of the setup role in which he thrived last year, stating that a promotion to closer “would be a dream come true,” but T.R. Sullivan of MLB.com reported last week that Feliz seems to be the current front-runner for the vacancy.

“Feliz appears to be healthy again, which puts him in position to be the Rangers’ closer coming out of spring training,” Sullivan writes. “Right now the job is Feliz’s to lose.”

Recent history is on his side as well, as Texas made its only two World Series appearances in Feliz’s two years at closer (2010 and 2011). Over that span, the 25-year-old furnished a 2.73 earned run average while ranking third in the A.L. in saves (72) behind Jose Valverde and Mariano Rivera.

Feliz tried to make the conversion to starter in 2012 and won his first bit-league start, but his effectiveness seemed to desert him after throwing a career-high eight innings in an April doubleheader versus Detroit.

Issuing a total of 15 walks over his next four starts, Feliz was placed on the disabled list with a sprained throwing elbow following a mid-May loss at Houston, and by August he was forced to undergo season-ending Tommy John surgery.

With his days as a starter behind him for the moment, Feliz is still considered a valuable asset out of the bullpen and may be the best bet to fill the void left by Nathan’s departure.

“It is very important to me,” Feliz said of the ninth-inning role. “I have been a closer already. Nobody will take it away from me … because I want to go back to a World Series and win it. I think this is our year to do it.”

Japanese Star Tanaka Posted by Club

Right-hander Masahiro Tanaka became the top pitcher on the market when he was posted last Wednesday by his current team, the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japan’s Pacific League.

Tanaka, 25, put up staggering numbers last season as a member of the Golden Eagles, going a perfect 24-0 with an ERA of 1.27 and 183 strikeouts while completing all but one of his 28 starts.

Rakuten had originally said it would not post Tanaka following a change in the bidding process (in which the fee paid by Major League Baseball clubs for the right to sign a player is now capped at $20 million), but reversed its decision in an announcement last week.

The new posting rules means that more MLB teams are likely to make a run a Tanaka, with the Rangers expected to be active suitors despite sizeable 2014 financial commitments to Choo, Fielder and Adrian Beltre.

McGuiness DFA’d, then Sent to Pirates

First baseman Chris McGuiness was designated for assignment by Texas last Friday in order to make room on the 40-man roster for Shin-Soo Choo, and he was subsequently traded to Pittsburgh on Monday for right-hander Miles Mikolas.

The 25-year-old McGuiness had been one of the players the Rangers acquired from Boston at the 2010 trade deadline in exchange for catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia.

After being taken by Cleveland in the 2012 Rule 5 Draft, McGuiness was returned to Texas less than four months later, and he made his big-league debut in a Rangers uniform last June.

The Rangers were forced to clear another 40-man roster spot for Mikolas, so outfielder Rafael Ortega (who had just been picked up from Colorado in November) was designated for assignment.

Rangers Notes: Gentry, Lindblom Traded to Athletics

Craig Gentry was considered a superior defender and base runner with limited offensive tools.

Outfielder Craig Gentry and right-handed pitcher Josh Lindblom were dealt to Oakland on Tuesday in exchange for minor-league second baseman Chris Bostick and outfielder Michael Choice.

Gentry, who turned 30 last week, had been expected to compete for the Rangers’ vacancy in left field next spring, with Leonys Martin in center and Alex Rios in right.

It appears that opportunity will now go to the 24-year-old Choice, a North Texas native who holds the career home run record at the University of Texas-Arlington.

“Growing up here, I’ve been to a ton of Rangers games,” he said Tuesday. “Me and my dad would go to the Ballpark all the time. To be able to say that I’m going to play in front of this home crowd is an awesome feeling.”

Choice, who made his big-league debut and collected his first hit in September against Texas, had spent much of the season at Triple-A Sacramento in the Athletics’ organization, where set personal highs with a .302 batting average, 29 doubles and 90 runs scored.

Though the Rangers could still make a run at free agents like Carlos Beltran, Shin-Soo Choo or Kendrys Morales, their left-field candidates currently include Choice, Jim Adduci, Engel Beltre and even Mitch Moreland, displaced from his usual spot at first base by the addition of Prince Fielder.

“If today was Mar. 31, we’re comfortable we can put together a quality outfield,” Texas general manager Jon Daniels said. “But it is Dec. 3. We still have time to see what’s out there. We could add somebody else to the mix, or we may go with what we’ve got.”

The Rangers are also seeking a veteran presence to complement Geovany Soto behind the plate, although an already thin free-agent market for catchers got even thinner this week when Dioner Navarro, Wil Nieves and Jarrod Saltalamacchia all signed with new clubs.

Some have mentioned former Oakland and Washington catcher Kurt Suzuki as a possible fit for Texas, and with the recent flurry of backstop signings, some kind of move could be made at Major League Baseball’s winter meetings next week in Orlando, Florida.

“We’re looking for the best all-around fit,” Daniels said. “We place a high value on durability. If [Soto] went down, we would want somebody who could step in and be an everyday guy.”

Nathan, Pierzynski Shift to A.L. Central

In addition to the Gentry trade, Texas saw a bit more roster fluctuation Tuesday when closer Joe Nathan and catcher A.J. Pierzynski were signed by the Tigers and Red Sox, respectively.

An American League All-Star in each of his two years with the Rangers, Nathan compiled 80 saves and posted an earned run average of 2.09 across 129 innings of work.

Pierzynski, meanwhile, hit about 10 points below his career batting average during his lone season in Texas, but he still delivered 17 home runs and provided the Rangers with 15 years’ worth of big-league experience at backstop.

Texas will most likely look to fill Nathan’s role internally, with late-inning relievers Joakim Soria, Tanner Scheppers and Neftali Feliz appearing to be the leading candidates at this point.

Outfielder Ortega Claimed from Rockies

The Rangers acquired outfielder Rafael Ortega on a waiver claim from the Colorado Rockies last Wednesday and added him to their 40-man roster.

The 22-year-old Ortega spent last season at Double-A Tulsa in the Colorado farm system, hitting .228 with nine stolen bases. The extent of his big-league service time consists of two games with the Rockies in 2012.

Across parts of six seasons in the minors, Ortega has already racked up 156 stolen bases while compiling a .298 lifetime batting average.

Rangers Notes: Berkman, Nathan Unlikely to Return

Lance Berkman hit well to start the season before he was forced out of the lineup by nagging injuries.

Having paid $10 million to steer him away from retirement and be their designated hitter this year, the Rangers last week declined their $12 million option for next season on Lance Berkman, opting instead for a $1 million buyout.

Berkman hit safely in 13 of his first 15 games this season and was batting over .300 in mid-May, but his production took a dive over the next few weeks as he dealt with the effects of recurring knee and hip ailments, which ultimately sent him to the disabled in early July.

Upon his return when active rosters expanded in September, Berkman made back-to-back starts at Oakland before again being sidelined for more than a week, and he went 0-for-12 with four strikeouts across his final five games.

The switch-hitting Berkman, a native of the Lone Star State whose resume includes 366 career home runs, may still try to catch on with another team in 2014, but his short stint in a Texas uniform appears to be finished.

Veteran closer Joe Nathan, on the other hand, did have his $9 million club option picked up by the Rangers, although he exercised his right to void the option and become an unrestricted free agent.

Nathan has indicated his desire to receive a multiyear contract, and Texas was apparently unwilling to extend him beyond next season.

“I want at least two years,” he said last Thursday. “The last couple of years, I think I’ve proven that I’m healthy. I think I’ve proven to lots of skeptics and critics that I can handle a two-year deal or maybe two and an option.”

Since taking over as the Rangers’ closer prior to the 2012 season, Nathan appeared in 133 games and converted 80 out of 86 save opportunities while making the American League All-Star team both years.

With Nathan out of the picture, Texas could look to a couple of in-house candidates as a possible replacement, namely hard-throwing righty Tanner Scheppers and former Kansas City closer Joakim Soria.

As expected, the Rangers also made a $14.1 million qualifying offer to outfielder Nelson Cruz on Monday, meaning that Texas will receive a compensatory draft pick if Cruz signs with another team.

Soto Re-Signed to One-Year Deal

The Rangers are bringing back at least one of their free-agent catchers as Geovany Soto agreed to a one-year contract worth just over $3 million on Tuesday.

“Geo brings a lot to the club with his handling of the staff and defense,” general manager Jon Daniels said. “I think with his work and adjustments he made late in the year with [hitting coach] Dave Magadan, we’ve seen what he was capable of earlier in his career.”

Soto, who served as the backup to A.J. Pierzynski last season, would figure to be the team’s primary catcher heading into 2014, although Texas also seems like a logical suitor for 30-year-old Brian McCann, the top backstop on the free-agent market this winter.

B.B. Abbott, the agent representing McCann, indicated on Wednesday that his client may already have the Rangers in mind as well, noting that Arlington is “certainly an attractive place for [Brian].

“He’s a left-handed power-hitting catcher who likes to handle a mature and quality staff,” Abbott continued. “They have a good front office and a good coaching staff. He would be crazy not to look at that as a landing spot.”

Texas Claims Roe off Waivers from D’Backs

Right-handed pitcher Chaz Roe was acquired on a waiver claim from Arizona last Friday and placed on the Rangers’ 40-man roster.

The 27-year-old Roe made his major-league debut with the Diamondbacks this summer, posting a 1-0 record with a 4.03 earned run average across 21 relief appearances. He also saw action in 22 games at Triple-A Reno, where he picked up seven saves.

Roe was a 2005 first-round draft pick of the Colorado Rockies before being dealt to Seattle in exchange for infielder Jose Lopez in December 2010, then he was signed by Arizona late in the 2012 season.