The Rangers have designated outfielder Jake Smolinski for assignment, executive VP of communications John Blake announced on Twitter. His 40-man and active roster spots were needed for the team to activate Ryan Rua from the 60-day DL.
Smolinski, 26, had hit just .133/.270/.200 in 74 plate appearances at the big league level this year. But he’s had plenty of success in other recent stints. Smolinski has obliterated Triple-A pitching in 2015, putting up a 1.280 OPS in 50 turns at bat, and slashed a strong .349/.391/.512 over 92 trips to the plate in his first run at the majors last year.
Both of those big state lines were fueled by huge BABIP numbers, however, and Smolinski’s history is more of sturdy reliability than significant pop. He has never finished a full campaign in the upper minors with an OPS over the .800 mark.
