Rangers Notes: Slugger Rios Joins Texas via Waiver Claim

Alex Rios went 2-for-3 with an RBI triple and a run scored in his Texas debut Saturday at Minute Maid Park.

Unable to acquire a right-handed bat to replace Nelson Cruz before the non-waiver trade deadline, the Rangers last week picked up outfielder Alex Rios and $1 million from the White Sox in exchange for infielder Leury Garcia.

Texas had claimed Rios off waivers from Chicago last Wednesday, giving the White Sox 48 hours to either work out a deal with the Rangers or remove the veteran slugger from the waiver wire.

By Friday afternoon the two clubs had reached an agreement that sent Rios – a two-time American League All-Star with Toronto who was hitting .277 with 12 home runs, 22 doubles and 55 RBIs for Chicago this season – to Texas.

“With the situation that [the White Sox] were in, it wasn’t too much of a surprise,” Rios said of the move. “They were trying to get rid of salary or whatever they wanted to do. I think many people expected this to happen.”

A lifetime .278 batter with 211 career stolen bases, the 32-year-old Rios is expected supplant Cruz as the Rangers’ everyday right fielder and is considered to be the superior defender among the two.

Manager Ron Washington views the acquisition of Rios as a move that will complement what has recently become a potent Texas offense, this despite the losses of Cruz (suspension) and designated hitter Lance Berkman (hip injury).

“He adds to the dynamic that is already here,” Washington said. “We are not going to change the way we play. He will be a tremendous asset to what we already have in place.”

Darvish Puts Icing on Historic Road Trip

Texas wrapped up a 9-1 road trip for the first time in club history Monday afternoon, sealing a very successful A.L. West road swing with a four-game sweep over the Astros at Minute Maid Park.

Making his first start in Houston since coming within one strike of a perfect game back in April, right-hander Yu Darvish did not allow a base runner Monday until issuing a disputed walk to Astros shortstop Jonathan Villar in the sixth inning.

Darvish, who set a new career high with 15 strikeouts in the 2-1 win, still carried a no-hitter into the bottom of the eighth, but Carlos Corporan ended that when he connected for a solo home run to ruin the shutout bid as well.

Prior to Darvish’s gem, the Rangers had won all three weekend games over the Astros, beginning with a comeback victory Friday in which Texas rallied for six runs over the final two innings to beat Houston by a 9-5 final.

On Saturday, newly-acquired Alex Rios had two hits and scored the go-ahead run while the Rangers again battled back to tie and eventually win the game, 5-4, versus the Astros’ bullpen.

Left-hander Martin Perez was the star Sunday as he threw his first career complete game and came within one strike of a shutout, giving up a solo home run to Chris Carter in the ninth inning before finishing off a 6-1 win for Texas.

Rosales Sent Back to Oakland, Then Re-Claimed

Less than five days after being designated for assignment by Texas and returning to the Oakland Athletics, infielder Adam Rosales was again designated for assignment by the A’s last Saturday and subsequently re-claimed on waivers by the Rangers.

“Adam is a quality big-league infielder,” Texas general manager Jon Daniels said. “We’ve always liked the way he goes about and the energy he brings. As our circumstances have changed over the past week or so, it changed our ability to carry him. We’re glad to get a second chance at it.”

Those circumstances included dealing Leury Garcia — who was the Rangers’ backup infielder earlier in the season — to the White Sox in the trade for Alex Rios.

Texas made room to add Rosales to the active roster on Monday by optioning outfielder Engel Beltre back to Triple-A Round Rock.

Rangers Notes: Slumping Play Continues on Dismal Homestand

Josh Lindblom watches Adam Lind’s first-inning home run sail into the right-field stands Saturday.

The Rangers find themselves a full three games behind the division-leading Oakland Athletics following a disappointing start to their 11-game homestand, losing six out of seven versus Cleveland and Toronto while suffering through an anemic offensive slide.

Texas is batting just .223 as a team over the last two weeks, racking up more than twice as many strikeouts as walks and going a combined 15-for-97 with runners in scoring position, stranding exactly 100 men on the base paths since Jun. 4.

Jeff Baker and Lance Berkman each hit two-run homers in the Rangers’ most recent win last Monday, helping Texas beat the Indians, 6-3, as Robbie Ross struck out all three batters he faced to earn the victory out of the bullpen.

Right-hander Corey Kluber limited the Texas lineup to a run on six hits over eight innings of work Tuesday, inducing 13 ground-ball outs and helping the Tribe cruise to a 5-2 win.

Cleveland took the series with another 5-2 victory on Wednesday, using five relievers after a shaky start by Ubaldo Jimenez and benefiting from home runs by Mike Aviles and Jason Kipnis off the Rangers’ Nick Tepesch.

Thursday saw Nelson Cruz give Texas an early lead with his solo home run in the bottom of the second, but Melky Cabrera’s RBI single tied the game in the third before Edwin Encarnacion put the Blue Jays in front for good with a two-run double in the eighth, handing the Rangers a 3-1 defeat.

Justin Grimm took a beating Friday as Toronto scored four runs in the fourth inning and kept piling on after that, leading to an 8-0 shutout win over Texas and handing Grimm his second blowout loss in his last three appearances.

On Saturday, former Ranger R.A. Dickey held Texas to one earned run in five-plus innings pitched, and he was supported by two-run homers from Adam Lind and Colby Rasmus while the Blue Jays sailed to a 6-1 victory in Arlington.

Making just his second start for Toronto since getting released by the Yankees, right-hander Chien-Ming Wang tossed seven scoreless frames in Sunday’s series finale, helping the Blue Jays secure a 7-2 and a four-game road sweep.

This marks the first time that the Rangers have lost six straight games on a single homestand since June 1997, when they dropped six in a row against the Mariners and Angels in Arlington.

Kinsler Returns to Lineup, Garcia Sent Down

Second baseman Ian Kinsler, slated to come back from the disabled list sometime this week, was instead activated prior to Saturday’s game while infielder Leury Garcia was optioned back to Triple-A Round Rock.

Kinsler had been on the 15-day DL since May 19 due to a stress reaction in his right ribcage, and Garcia had seen his playing time reduced as top-rated prospect Jurickson Profar got most of the starts at second base in Kinsler’s absence.

Profar will shift to a backup utility role for the time being — he made his first career start at third base on Sunday — and has begun working with outfield instructor Gary Pettis on learning to play the corner spots.

As for Garcia, the 22-year-old saw action in 25 games with the Rangers this season, making starts at second, third and shortstop but hitting just .192 with one run batted in.

Many of Top Draft Picks Already Signed

After taking a total of 41 players in this year’s amateur draft, Texas has so far signed 12 of its first 13 picks to minor-league contracts.

The club’s top three overall selections — right-handed pitcher Alex “Chi-Chi” Gonzalez, shortstop Travis Demeritte and righty Akeem Bostick — were introduced at a press conference before last Monday’s game against Cleveland.

Of their top 10 picks in the draft, the Rangers have agreed to terms with all except University of Oregon right-hander Cole Wiper, who had been drafted by Toronto in 2011 but did not sign.

Rangers Notes: Bats Come Alive on Extended Road Trip

Geovany Soto (left) will receive most of the playing time at catcher while starter A.J. Pierzynski recovers from a strained oblique muscle.

The Rangers began a four-city, nine-game road trip with mixed results against the Cubs and Brewers last week, then moved on to Houston and saw the lineup break out with 24 runs and 37 hits in a weekend sweep over the Astros at Minute Maid Park.

Chicago won Monday’s makeup game, 9-2, behind a complete effort from former Texas right-hander Scott Feldman, who threw seven shutout innings and also chipped in with an RBI single and a run scored.

Rangers starter Nick Tepesch had intentionally walked Darwin Barney to put runners at first and second with two outs in the bottom of the fourth, but the strategy backfired when Feldman hit an opposite-field run-scoring single that eventually led to a five-run frame for the Cubs.

Texas was done in by another five-run inning on Tuesday, this time at the hands of the Brewers at Miller Park. All five runs in the bottom of the first were earned and charged to Justin Grimm, who took the 6-3 loss but settled down to strike out seven batters over five frames.

On Wednesday, southpaw Derek Holland helped the Rangers snap a two-game losing skid for his second outing in a row, scattering 10 hits across seven innings of work while Ian Kinsler and Mitch Moreland both homered en route to a 4-1 win over Milwaukee.

After an off day, Texas started a three-game series versus last-place Houston with a 4-2 victory on Friday, when Alexi Ogando and the Rangers bullpen were backed by solo home runs from Nelson Cruz, Jeff Baker and David Murphy.

Saturday saw the Texas lineup erase a 3-1 deficit by scoring six runs in the top of the sixth inning, with reliever Philip Humber absorbing much of the damage for the Astros. Humber was subsequently designated for assignment by Houston.

Right-hander Yu Darvish allowed three runs over seven innings pitched Saturday and increased his MLB-leading strikeout total to 80, and the Rangers held off a late charge by the Astros to seal the 8-7 win.

Every starter in the Texas lineup finished with at least one hit Sunday as the Rangers scored early and often against Houston’s Jordan Lyles and Edgar Gonzalez, cruising to a 12-7 victory to complete the series sweep.

Adrian Beltre went 4-for-5 with two doubles and a homer Sunday afternoon, and Leury Garcia scored four runs filling in for Ian Kinsler at second base.

Oblique Strain Sends Pierzynski to DL

Catcher A.J. Pierzynski was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a strained right oblique muscle Thursday (retroactive to May 6), and Robinson Chirinos was recalled from Triple-A Round Rock to replace him on the active roster.

Pierzynski, 36, had been playing through the injury in his previous few games — although he had not seen action since last Sunday against the Red Sox — and he underwent an MRI in Milwaukee on Wednesday that revealed the strain.

The 28-year-old Chirinos could see sporadic playing time while Pierzynski is out, but Geovany Soto will get most of the starts behind the plate for Texas.

This marks just the second trip to the disabled list for Pierzynski in his 14 big-league seasons; he also missed time due to a broken left wrist in 2011 while with the Chicago White Sox.

Perez Activated, Optioned to Double-A

Sidelined for more than two months after sustaining a broken arm in spring training, left-hander Martin Perez was activated from the 15-day disabled list Sunday and optioned to Double-A Frisco.

Perez had been a leading candidate for the Rangers’ fifth starting spot as spring training began in Arizona, but he was knocked out of the running in early March when he took a line drive off the bat of Seattle’s Brad Miller.

The 22-year-old Perez was diagnosed with a fractured ulna bone in his throwing arm, and he has been slowly working his way back into action since then.

Rangers Notes: Texas Splits Six versus Mariners, Cubs

Jeff Baker delivers a two-out, run-scoring double Tuesday in Chicago, part of the Rangers’ 4-2 win at Wrigley Field.

The Rangers completed this season’s first road trip outside of Texas by splitting a four-game set with the Mariners at Safeco Field before taking one out of two from the Cubs in Chicago.

Despite watching as Seattle right-hander Felix Hernandez notched his 1,500^th career strikeout last Thursday, the Rangers got to him for 10 hits and rallied to beat the Mariners by a 4-3 final.

A.J. Pierzynski homered and went 2-for-3 at the plate, and he teamed with reliever Robbie Ross for a key putout in the bottom of the eighth when Seattle’s Brendan Ryan attempted a suicide squeeze bunt with Endy Chavez, the potential tying run, at third base.

Right-hander Yu Darvish took his first loss of the year Friday, getting tagged for three runs in the first inning but settling down enough to last through the sixth and retire the final 12 batters he faced.

Texas got a lift from infielder Leury Garcia in his big-league debut Saturday and came from behind to beat the Mariners, 3-1, with Garcia collecting a base hit, a walk and a run scored.

Fellow rookie Joe Ortiz — who was credited with his first career victory in Thursday’s game — threw two perfect innings in relief of Alexi Ogando and Robbie Ross to earn his second win on Saturday.

Seattle managed a series split Sunday afternoon by chipping away at Rangers starter Nick Tepesch for four runs over five-plus innings of work, while Texas came up just short with three runs against Mariners rookie Brandon Maurer.

Making their first trip to Wrigley Field since 2002, the Rangers on Tuesday got a solid performance out of Derek Holland and held on for a 4-2 win.

Adrian Beltre’s two-run homer in the eighth inning proved to be the difference while Craig Gentry made a game-saving catch in the bottom of the ninth to end it and preserve the save for Joe Nathan.

Following a rainout on Wednesday, the Cubs got to Alexi Ogando for five earned runs in less than three innings pitched Thursday afternoon on the way to a 6-2 win over Texas.

Chicago Claims Borbon off Waivers

Less than 24 hours after the Rangers departed from the Windy City, outfielder Julio Borbon was claimed off the waiver wire Friday by the Cubs. Borbon had been designated for assignment by Texas and ultimately given his release.

Borbon saw big-league action over parts of three seasons in Arlington before spending all of last year at Triple-A Round Rock, where he batted .304 with a team-leading 162 hits.

Ultimately, he found himself without a true roster spot as the club opted to begin this season with the tandem of Craig Gentry and Leonys Martin in center.

The Rangers had indicated their desire to receive pitching depth in return for Borbon should they have found a trade partner, but no such deal materialized.

Beliveau Dealt to Tampa Bay

Left-handed pitcher Jeff Beliveau was traded to the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday in exchange for cash considerations.

Beliveau, 26, was part of the Rangers spring training roster after being picked up from the Cubs last December, but he had made just one appearance with Round Rock so far this season.

He was designated for assignment on Apr. 8 to clear a 40-man roster spot for Robinson Chirinos, who had been acquired from the Rays in a separate deal.

Rangers Notes: Cactus League Update No. 3

Although he won’t be in the starting rotation to begin the season, Michael Kirkman looks to fill an important swing role out of the bullpen.

Aside from one final split-squad game this afternoon against the Diamondbacks, Texas is finished with the lengthy Arizona portion of spring training and has only exhibition games remaining versus the Mexico City Red Devils and San Diego Padres before the season begins.

Matt Harrison will get his first Opening Day start when the Rangers travel to Houston to face their new American League West rivals in front of a national television audience Sunday evening at Minute Maid Park.

Harrison will be tentatively followed in the rotation by right-handers Yu Darvish and Alexi Ogando and left-hander Derek Holland, who is set to start the home opener on Friday, Apr. 5, against the Los Angeles Angels.

The fifth starter for Texas is going to be 24-year-old righty Nick Tepesch, a non-roster invitee who impressed with early spring training numbers and won the role over southpaws Michael Kirkman and Robbie Ross, both of whom will begin the season in the bullpen.

As far as position battles go, infielders Jeff Baker and Leury Garcia have each made the Rangers’ Opening Day roster while Jurickson Profar was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock, where he is more likely to see regular playing time than he would in the majors.

Along with Profar, Texas also sent outfielder Jim Adduci, pitcher Nate Robertson and catcher Eli Whiteside to Round Rock earlier this week.

Utility player Brandon Snyder, meanwhile, requested and was granted his release following Wednesday’s loss to Arizona. Snyder batted .154 with five runs scored and nine strikeouts in 18 Cactus League games this spring.

Grimm, Wells Optioned to Minors

Right-handers Justin Grimm and Randy Wells were both told last Friday that they will start the year pitching at Triple-A Round Rock, where they could be mainstays of the Express’ rotation at the outset of the season.

Grimm and Wells were among a small group being considered for the No. 5 starter role, but they were the odd men out when the Rangers revealed that Nick Tepesch had made the rotation.

On Saturday, the team sent infielder Yangervis Solarte and pitchers Lisalverto Bonilla and Ben Rowen to minor-league camp, and Texas also announced that it had released catcher Konrad Schmidt.

Mills Acquired on Waiver Claim

The Rangers picked up left-hander Brad Mills from the Los Angeles Angels on a waiver claim Sunday, moving injured righty Neftali Feliz to the 60-day disabled list in order to clear a 40-man roster spot for Mills.

Appropriately, Mills faced his former Los Angeles teammates Wednesday in his lone Cactus League outing for Texas, getting the start and throwing four innings of one-run ball. Mills allowed four hits and a walk while recording three strikeouts in the game.

Over parts of the last four seasons with Toronto and the Angels, Mills has a career record of 3-3 with a 1.65 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He is not likely to break camp with the big-league club, but Mills could feasibly provide added starting rotation depth at Triple-A.

Texas Releases, Then Re-Signs Tateyama

Right-handed relief pitcher Yoshinori Tateyama was released by the Rangers on Friday morning, only to be re-signed to a minor-league contract two days later.

Tateyama, 37, had been in big-league camp with Texas this spring, but he was sent over to the minors early last week after posting a 3.60 earned run average across five relief appearances in Cactus League action.

Following a breakout 2011 campaign, the Japanese veteran got into just 14 games for the Rangers last season and saw his ERA jump to 9.00, with a good portion of the damage coming in two disastrous mid-summer outings against the Mariners and Chicago White Sox.