The Rangers are among several teams that are considering signing first baseman/DH Kendrys Morales, reports Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. With the first day of the draft now past, teams can sign Morales without sacrificing a pick.
As Grant notes, the Rangers are anticipating around $8MM in insurance claims to flow back to the club due to the injuries to first baseman Prince Fielder and pitcher Matt Harrison. Texas opened the season with a record $133.5MM payroll, but has struggled to play up to expectations with a series of notable injuries.
A serious pursuit of Morales would certainly signal that the club hopes to stay in contention in spite of its many losses. The Rangers stand at .500 entering today’s action, seven games back of the A’s in the AL West. Grant says that Texas is interested in adding another power bat alongside the struggling Mitch Moreland after losing Fielder from the middle of the lineup. Of course, Fielder and Moreland were already falling well short of their anticipated production, and Morales’s bat represents a clear upgrade over the team’s current internal options.
