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Nick Solak

Mariners Acquire Nick Solak From Reds

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The Reds have traded corner outfielder/second baseman Nick Solak to the Mariners for cash, both teams announced. Seattle had an opening on the 40-man roster and immediately optioned Solak to Triple-A Tacoma. No additional move was necessary.

Solak never played a regular season game as a Red. Cincinnati acquired the right-handed hitter from the Rangers at the beginning of the offseason. It was a cash transaction that saw the Reds add a player who was a few years removed from being a well-regarded prospect. Cincinnati gave Solak a look as part of a wide-open outfield mix in Spring Training, but he collected just two hits in 20 at-bats.

That lackluster exhibition showing pushed Solak down the outfield depth chart. Cincinnati designated him for assignment yesterday as they set their Opening Day roster, clearing a 40-man spot to add a pair of relievers and infielder Jason Vosler to the big league group. Solak’s stay in DFA limbo lasted only a little more than 24 hours, as Seattle stepped in to jump the waiver order.

A second-round pick of the Yankees in 2016, Solak has now been a part of five different organizations as a professional. He’s only ever played in an MLB game with Texas, tallying 974 plate appearances as a Ranger between 2019-22. Solak broke into the majors with an impressive .293/.393/.491 showing over 33 contests as a rookie, showing the offensive promise which prospect evaluators had long noted.

The Louisville product hasn’t managed to build off that strong debut. He’s been a below-average hitter in each of the three seasons since then, combining for a .246/.317/.354 line in 839 plate appearances dating back to 2020. He’s shown decent contact skills but not drawn many walks or hit for a significant amount of power.

That tepid offense has come as Solak has increasingly moved down the defensive spectrum. Drafted as a second baseman, he’s long been regarded by scouts as a below-average defender there. Defensive Runs Saved graded him six runs worse than par in a little more than 1000 innings in 2021. Texas pushed him to left field with the Marcus Semien signing in 2022.

In spite of his lackluster big league showings of late, the 28-year-0ld has continued to perform well in the minors. He spent most of last season with the Rangers’ top affiliate in Round Rock, where he hit .278/.371/.489 with 10 longballs, a strong 11.6% walk rate and a 19.7% strikeout percentage over 57 games. He’s now a .293/.370/.510 hitter over parts of three Triple-A campaigns.

Solak has one minor league option year remaining. The M’s can keep him in Tacoma as needed for the rest of this season if he holds a spot on the 40-man roster. He adds a right-handed bat who could potentially join Sam Haggerty and, when healthy, Dylan Moore as complements to Kolten Wong at second base. Seattle also has a left field platoon of Jarred Kelenic and AJ Pollock, with Solak stepping in behind them and Cooper Hummel in that regard.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Reds Designate Nick Solak For Assignment

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The Reds announced a series of roster moves prior to today’s season opener. They have selected the contracts of right-hander Derek Law, left-hander Alex Young and infielder Jason Vosler. To open places on the 40-man roster, right-handers Tejay Antone and Justin Dunn were placed on the 60-day injured list, while infielder/outfielder Nick Solak was designated for assignment. Additionally, infielder/outfielder Nick Senzel and first baseman Joey Votto were placed on the 10-day injured list while right-handers Tony Santillan, Lucas Sims and Luke Weaver were placed on the 15-day injured list.

Solak, 28, was once a highly-touted prospect who had a strong debut with the Rangers in 2019. He hit .293/.393/.491 that year in 33 games but has struggled since and now carries a career batting line of .252/.327/.372. That amounts to a wRC+ of 93, indicating he’s been about 7% below league average. Concerns about his second base defense also pushed him into the outfield corners, putting more pressure on his bat to provide value. He was traded to the Reds in November but had a rough spring, getting just two hits in 24 plate appearances. Despite his rough showing of late, he might get a shot elsewhere based on his prospect pedigree. He also still has an option remaining and can be stashed in the minors by any team willing to give him a 40-man roster spot.

Young, 29, spent most of last year with the Giants, posting a 2.36 ERA over 25 appearances with an 18.1% strikeout rate, 9.5% walk rate and 54.2% ground ball rate. Despite that solid campaign, he was non-tendered at season’s end and landed a minor league deal with the Reds. He’ll give the club a second lefty in the bullpen alongside Reiver Sanmartin. The right-handed Law will also join that bullpen, which was reported earlier this week.

Vosler, 29, got into 77 games with the Giants over the past two seasons, hitting .228/.306/.421 for a wRC+ of 100. Like Young, he was also non-tendered by the Giants and got a minor league deal from the Reds. He’s played all four infield positions in his career, as well as the outfield corners, giving Cincinnati a versatile player to plug in around their younger players as needed.

Turning to the IL placements, none of them are particularly surprising. Dunn has a shoulder injury that will keep him out of action for a couple of months. Antone has a flexor strain in his forearm that may keep him out until the All-Star break. Votto is still recovering from last year’s shoulder surgery, Weaver is battling forearm discomfort, while Santillan and Sims are dealing with lingering back issues.

The Reds’ Numerous Outfield Possibilities

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The Reds go into the 2023 campaign looking at another evaluation year. Cincinnati is coming off a 100-loss season and didn’t make many immediate upgrades over the winter. It’ll be a non-competitive season, one that sees a number of unproven players look to carve out longer-term roles.

No area of the roster is more wide open than the outfield. Cincinnati has eight outfielders on their 40-man roster. Of that group, only offseason signee Wil Myers has a lengthy big league track record. Myers had some ups and downs as a member of the Padres, showcasing strong power potential at times but undercutting it with lofty strikeout totals at others. Signed to a one-year, $7.5MM deal, he’ll surely receive regular playing time either in the corner outfield or at first base. The franchise will hope he’ll hit well enough to draw some attention from contenders at the trade deadline.

Everyone else in the Cincinnati outfield is hoping to earn a consistent spot in the lineup. It’s a similar group to that of the rebuilding Athletics — one that has a glut of upper level options but very little in the way of established big league production.

Jake Fraley, 27, two minor league options remaining

Fraley is probably the favorite for regular reps among the group of unproven players. Acquired from the Mariners in last spring’s Eugenio Suarez/Jesse Winker deal, Fraley put up an impressive .259/.344/.468 line with 12 home runs over his first 247 plate appearances as a Red. Most of that work came in the season’s second half, as he lost a good portion of the beginning of the year to right knee issues.

The lefty-swinging Fraley also posted solid offensive marks in a limited role in Seattle the previous year. He carries a .235/.348/.419 line with 21 homers and 16 doubles in 145 games over the past couple seasons. He doesn’t hit the ball especially hard but makes contact at a decent clip and has an extremely patient offensive approach. Fraley has limited experience in center and right field (rating poorly at both stops); he’s gotten solid reviews from public defensive metrics for his left field glovework.

Nick Senzel, 27, three options remaining

A former #2 overall pick, Senzel was a consensus top prospect before reaching the majors in 2019. He hasn’t met those expectations thus far, struggling to a .240/.303/.360 line in 1036 career plate appearances. A natural third baseman, Senzel moved primarily to center field at the MLB level and has gotten middling to well below-average reviews for his glove from various metrics.

Senzel has shown above-average contact skills at the big league level, though he hasn’t made much of a power impact. Despite his early-career struggles, the Reds have maintained throughout the offseason they plan to give him another crack at seizing the center field job. It feels like a make-or-break season, with Senzel now into his arbitration seasons and having performed below replacement level thus far.

The Reds are obviously still hopeful he can take a long-awaited step forward. He’ll first need to get healthy. Senzel underwent surgery to repair a fractured toe over the offseason. Bobby Nightengale of the Cincinnati Enquirer wrote this afternoon that he’s begun swinging a bat in simulated games at the team’s spring complex. He has yet to progress to full speed running.

TJ Friedl, 27, two options remaining

Friedl has been one of the more interesting outfielders in the Cincinnati farm system for a few seasons. He got a brief big league look late in 2021 and received his first extended action last season. In 258 plate appearances across 72 games, he hit at a league average clip: .240/.314/.436 with eight home runs, a modest 7.8% walk percentage and a tiny 15.5% strikeout rate.

The left-handed hitter had more resounding success over a similar stretch of time for Triple-A Louisville. Friedl posted a .278/.371/.468 line with eight homers, an 11.6% walk rate and a 19.9% strikeout percentage over 241 trips with the Bats. That mostly aligns with his longstanding prospect reputation. Friedl doesn’t have much power but he has a solid feel for the strike zone and puts the ball in play with regularity. He can play all three outfield positions, though advanced metrics weren’t enthused with his first MLB work on the grass. Friedl has typically been regarded by prospect evaluators as a high-probability fourth/fifth outfielder. The upcoming campaign could be his best opportunity to outperform that expectation.

Will Benson, 24, three options remaining

Benson, acquired from the Guardians last month, has a polar opposite approach from Friedl. He’s also a left-handed batter but boasts huge power upside with a long track record of lofty strikeout totals. A former first-round draftee whose prospect shine had dimmed, Benson put himself back on the map with arguably a career-best season last year.

In 89 games with Cleveland’s top minor league affiliate, he hit .278/.426/.522 with 17 home runs. Benson walked a massive 18.7% clip — par for the course throughout his career — and struck out in an average 22.7% of his trips. It was the first time he’d posted a strikeout rate below 28% at any stop and only his second season fanning in fewer than 30% of his PA’s. Benson didn’t produce in a 28-game MLB cameo and was still buried on Cleveland’s outfield depth chart, but his step forward intrigued the Reds enough to take a look. He’s best suited for right field and can cover center on occasion.

Nick Solak, 28, one option remaining

Another one-time top prospect, Solak has had some inconsistent performances the past few years with the Rangers. He had an excellent 33-game debut in 2019. Since the start of 2020, however, the righty-swinging Solak carries a modest .246/.317/.354 line in 839 MLB plate appearances. Longstanding concerns about his defense at second base eventually pushed him to left field, where he has gotten subpar grades from public statistics.

To his credit, Solak hasn’t allowed his MLB inconsistency to bleed into his performance in the minor leagues. Optioned to Triple-A by Texas last season, he put up an impressive .278/.371/.489 mark with 10 longballs, an 11.6% walk rate and a 19.7% strikeout percentage in 57 contests. The Rangers never seemed to trust him enough to give him an extended look despite woeful MLB production from their left fielders, though. Texas dealt him to Cincinnati for cash immediately after the season ended.

Michael Siani, 23, three options remaining

A former fourth-round pick, Siani has spent the past few seasons ranked among the middle tiers of the Cincinnati farm system. Praised for his speed and defensive acumen in center field, he went 49 for 61 as a basestealer over 121 Double-A games last year. His overall .252/.351/.404 line with 12 home runs at that level was solid if unexceptional for a 22-year-old. Siani earned cups of coffee in both Louisville and Cincinnati towards the end of the season.

It stands to reason Cincinnati will start Siani back in Triple-A given his lack of experience there. Baseball America ranked him the organization’s #19 prospect this winter, projecting him as a glove-first fourth outfielder.

Stuart Fairchild, 26, one option remaining

A former Cincinnati second-round pick, Fairchild was dealt to the Diamondbacks at the 2020 trade deadline. He made his MLB debut with Arizona the following season, getting into 12 games. The Wake Forest product bounced around via minor trade and waivers last year, playing in four different organizations. He finished the season back with his original club when the Reds nabbed him off waivers from the Giants in June.

Fairchild played in 38 games for Cincinnati, connecting on five home runs in 99 trips. He struck out 29 times while drawing only eight walks but showed intriguing power. That was also the case in Triple-A, where he combined for a .258/.353/.490 line in 53 contests despite the constant uniform changes. He’s capable of playing all three outfield positions.

Chad Pinder, 30, not on 40-man roster

Pinder, a longtime member of the Athletics, signed a non-roster pact with a major league Spring Training invitation this winter. He’s coming off a .235/.263/.385 showing in 111 games for Oakland. The right-handed hitting Pinder has some power and a decent track record of hitting lefty pitching. He’s versatile enough to cover anywhere on the infield in addition to his corner outfield work. Pinder seems to have a strong chance at securing a bench role given that flexibility and Cincinnati’s fairly left-handed outfield mix. As a major league free agent who signed a minor league contract, he’ll have an automatic opt-out opportunity five days before the start of the regular season if he’s not added to the MLB roster.

Overall

Aside from Pinder, former highly-regarded prospect Allan Cerda and KBO veteran Henry Ramos are also in camp on non-roster contracts. Neither looks to have a strong chance at cracking the Opening Day roster considering the number of alternative outfield options for the front office and coaching staff to evaluate.

Myers is the only member of the current group who can’t be sent to the minor leagues, although Pinder couldn’t be optioned if he cracks the MLB roster. That could set the stage for plenty of shuffling over the next six months. The organization is surely hoping two or three players from the group will cement themselves as everyday options based on their 2023 production, lending some clarity to the longer-term mix.

Reds Acquire Nick Solak From Rangers

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The Reds have acquired outfielder Nick Solak from the Rangers in exchange for cash considerations, according to an announcement from Texas.

Solak, 28, in January, was a second round pick of the Yankees in 2016 but was traded to the Rays as part of the 2018 three-team deal that saw the Yanks get Brandon Drury and the Diamondbacks get Steven Souza Jr. In July of 2019, the Rays flipped him to Texas for Pete Fairbanks.

After that second trade, Solak made his MLB debut with the Rangers, getting into 33 games down the stretch in 2019. It could hardly have gone much better, as Solak hit .293/.393/.491 in that stretch for a wRC+ of 126. He played second and third base in that time, giving the Rangers an exciting option for the infield.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t been able to maintain those results since then. Over 2020 and 2021, he hit .250/.318/.357 for a wRC+ of just 88. He also struggled defensively and got pushed into a corner outfield role, putting more pressure on him to provide value offensively. He was optioned on and off the team throughout 2022, only getting into 35 big league games and not hitting too much when in the lineup. He finished the season on the IL due to a foot fracture and needed to be reinstated since the IL goes away today and doesn’t come back until Spring Training. Instead of adding him back to the roster, the club has swung a deal and sent him to Cincinnati.

For the Reds, there’s little harm in taking a shot on a bounceback. They’ve been stripping the roster down for the past couple of years and aren’t likely to be competitive here in 2023. Although Solak has struggled at the big league level in the past few years, he’s still performed well in Triple-A. In 2022, that led to a batting line of .278/.371/.489 and a wRC+ of 114.

The Reds have some other outfield options, such as Nick Senzel, TJ Friedl, Jake Fraley and Aristides Aquino, though none of them are really set in stone. Solak still has one option year remaining, which means the Reds don’t even need to commit an active roster spot for him. If he can get his bat back on track, he still has years of arbitration control remaining.

Rangers Sign Kevin Plawecki

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The Rangers have now officially signed catcher Kevin Plawecki, a move that was hinted at in recent reporting. The club announced the move, along with Nick Solak heading to the 60-day injured list with a right foot fracture in a corresponding move. The Solak move is a mere formality, as it was previously reported that he suffered a season-ending foot fracture.

Plawecki, 31, spent the past three seasons with the Red Sox, performing quite well in the first two. Over 2020 and 2021, while backing up Christian Vazquez, Plawecki hit .305/.364/.414 for a wRC+ of 112, or 12% above league average. He wasn’t able to sustain it here in 2022, however, dropping to a batting line of .217/.287/.287, 61 wRC+.

With the Red Sox out of the playoff race and Plawecki approaching free agency, they decided to give more playing time to controllable catchers like Reese McGuire and Connor Wong. That led to Plawecki getting designated for assignment, a move that apparently rankled the Boston clubhouse. Nathan Eovaldi and Rich Hill spoke on the record about Plawecki’s popularity on the club as a veteran leader, which is something it seems the Rangers are interested in.

Levi Weaver of The Athletic relays that he spoke to interim manager Tony Beasley about the move, with Beasley highlighting Plawecki’s reputation as a clubhouse guy and outlining how his presence would allow the club more flexibility in deploying its two other catchers, Jonah Heim and Sam Huff, down the stretch.

Rangers Interested In Signing Kevin Plawecki After Release From Red Sox

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5:45pm: Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News confirms the Rangers’ interest while relaying that the corresponding move would be placing infielder/outfielder Nick Solak on the injured list. Solak was recently diagnosed with a season-ending foot fracture. However, the transaction won’t happen right away, as Rob Bradford of WEEI relays that Plawecki can’t officially sign until 1:00pm on Wednesday.

5:30pm: The Red Sox have released catcher Kevin Plawecki, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe. Plawecki had been designated for assignment on Friday. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reports on Twitter that the backstop will be signing with a new team “imminently.” Robert Murray of FanSided reports that the Rangers are expressing “serious interest” in signing Plawecki.

Plawecki, 31, has been with the Red Sox since signing with them in January of 2020. He spent much of the past few years serving as the backup behind Christian Vazquez, getting into 24 games in the 60-game 2020 season, followed by 64 last year and 61 here this year. He had a decent showing at the plate in the first two of those years but has slumped here in 2022, hitting just .217/.287/.287, wRC+ of 62.

With the Sox sliding out of contention and Plawecki heading into free agency at season’s end, it made logical sense to give more playing time to Reese McGuire and Connor Wong, since both of them come with years of control beyond the current campaign. However, it was reported yesterday that certain players on the team didn’t see it quite so simply, lamenting the loss of Plawecki as a veteran clubhouse leader.

Regardless of Plawecki’s reputation among his fellow players, he wasn’t likely to be claimed off waivers given his tepid performance and $2.25MM salary for this year. It seems that he has indeed cleared waivers and become a free agent, leaving Boston on the hook for the remainder of that contract. For whoever ends up grabbing Plawecki, they would only have to pay him the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster, with that amount being subtracted from what the Sox pay.

For the Rangers, they currently have Jonah Heim as their primary catcher with Sam Huff as the backup. Huff has options and can thus be sent down to the minors if the club prefers to have Plawecki on the roster, or they could also carry three catchers given the expanded September rosters.

Nick Solak Suffers Season-Ending Foot Fracture

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Rangers infielder/outfielder Nick Solak is out for the rest of the season due to a right foot fracture, per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News. He will be placed on the injured list on Tuesday, due to the club having an off-day tomorrow.

Solak, 27, fouled a fall of his foot a few days ago and has been out of the lineup since then. It appears that the injury is significant enough to prevent him from returning this year, with just over two weeks remaining on the schedule. This will put an end to an uneven season for Solak, who has been shuffled around in a few different ways this year.

Last year, Solak got into 127 games for the Rangers, exclusively at second base. He provided solid glovework and stole seven bases but produced a batting line of .242/.314/.362. That offensive production was 12% below league average by measure of wRC+. This past offseason, the Rangers decided to spend aggressively to start digging themselves out of their rebuild, focusing on the infield in particular. They gave mega deals to Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, which pushed Solak into more outfield work.

This year, he’s only been able to play a single inning at second base at the MLB level, with the rest of his time being spent in left field. He’s also been optioned a few times, spending more of this season in Triple-A than in the majors. He’s fared well with Round Rock, hitting .278/.371/.489 for a wRC+ of 114 in 57 games. But after 35 major league contests, he’ll finish 2022 with a line of .207/.309/.329, wRC+ of 89.

With the breakout of Nathaniel Lowe and the promotion of prospect Josh Jung to take third base, the path to infield playing time seems closed to Solak going forward. An injury could always change that, but it seems like Solak’s best chance at getting a regular MLB gig is in the outfield. Even in the minors this year, the club only used him on the grass. Right now, the majority of the big league playing time in the outfield is going to Adolis Garcia, Leody Taveras and Bubba Thompson, with the club potentially bringing in outside reinforcements this winter. Since Solak will still have one option remaining next year, it’s possible he’s ticketed for another season of depth duty.

Rangers Select Jesus Tinoco

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The Rangers announced they’ve selected reliever Jesús Tinoco onto the major league roster. Outfielder Nick Solak has also been recalled from Triple-A Round Rock to take the two active roster spots created by September expansion. To open a spot on the 40-man roster, Texas transferred righty Josh Sborz from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list.

Tinoco signed a minor league deal with Texas over the offseason. The hard-throwing righty has spent the bulk of the year in Triple-A, although he did join the MLB club as a temporary replacement while they navigated some COVID-19 issues in June. He appeared in five games, working 5 2/3 innings of three-run ball while averaging 96.4 MPH on his fastball, before heading back to Round Rock. That brief showing marked his fourth consecutive year logging some MLB action. Previously a Rockie and Marlin, Tinoco owns a 4.88 ERA over 51 2/3 career innings.

The 27-year-old has yet to establish himself in a big league bullpen, but he’s had a strong 2022 campaign in the minors. Through 44 Triple-A frames, he owns a 3.27 ERA in a hitter-friendly league. He’s backed up that run prevention with an above-average 28.5% strikeout rate and an elite 58.7% ground-ball percentage. Tinoco will now get another opportunity to try to carry that over against big league hitters as he looks to stake a claim to a spot in next year’s bullpen. He’s out of minor league option years, however, so the Rangers have to keep him in the majors or expose him to waivers now that he’s earned a 40-man spot.

Solak has bounced on and off the MLB roster on a couple occasions this year. A former well-regarded hitting prospect, he hasn’t managed to find much in the way of consistent success against big league arms. Since a strong 2019 rookie season in limited action, Solak has posted below-average numbers at the plate. He’s also fallen down the defensive spectrum, moving to the corner outfield after struggling as a second baseman. Those issues on both sides of the ball have kept the 27-year-old primarily in Triple-A this season, but he’s responded to the demotion well to earn another look. Through 259 plate appearances with the Express, Solak is hitting .278/.371/.489 with ten home runs and a robust 11.6% walk rate.

Sborz just landed on the IL a couple days ago with an elbow sprain. He’s now officially shut down for the season. He’ll finish the campaign with a 6.45 ERA over 22 1/3 innings of relief, although he did strike out an excellent 32% of batters faced.

Rangers Option Nick Solak, Release Matt Carpenter

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The Rangers announced this afternoon that catcher Mitch Garver is returning from the 10-day injured list. To open space on the active roster, corner outfielder Nick Solak has been optioned to Triple-A Round Rock. Texas also announced that veteran infielder Matt Carpenter has been released from his minor league contract, making him a free agent.

Garver returns after a minimal IL stint because of a muscle strain in his forearm. Texas acquired the power-hitting backstop in a key offseason deal with the Twins, and he’s thus far appeared in 22 games with his new team. Garver is off to a relatively slow start, hitting .205/.292/.346 with a trio of homers in 89 trips to the plate. Backup catcher Jonah Heim has been excellent all season, though, and he and Garver figure to share a fair bit of time behind the dish and at designated hitter.

Solak is a former second-round pick and highly-regarded prospect. Texas acquired him from the Rays in July 2019 for reliever Pete Fairbanks, hoping they’d landed their long-term second baseman. The right-handed hitter had put up excellent numbers in the Yankees and Rays farm systems before the deal, which continued down the stretch at Texas’ top affiliate. Solak made his MLB debut late that season and hit .293/.393/.491 through his first 33 games, a continuation of the offensive upside he’d shown in the minors.

Unfortunately, he hasn’t managed to build off that early success. Solak didn’t hit for much power during the shortened 2020 season, and he stumbled to a .242/.314/.362 line over a personal-high 511 plate appearances last year. He also rated poorly defensively at the keystone, echoing concerns about his glovework that have persisted since his days as a prospect. After Texas signed a new double-play tandem of Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, they bumped Solak off the dirt entirely. He’s played exclusively left field and designated hitter to this point in 2022.

Falling further down the defensive spectrum only raises the pressure on the 27-year-old to hit. He got off to a strong start this year, primarily on the short side of a platoon. He hasn’t performed in May, however, and Texas will now send him back to the minors for more regular run. Through his first 75 plate appearances (more than half of which have come against left-handed pitching), Solak owns a .209/.293/.313 line.

Depending on how long he’s in the minors, the optional assignment could have an impact on Solak’s service trajectory. He’s on pace to hit free agency after the 2025 season, having entered the season with two years and 28 days of service time. Spending more than a month in the minors would jeopardize his ability to reach the three-year threshold after this season, although Solak will eventually need to perform better for the Rangers to tender him contracts throughout his arbitration years anyhow. With a .253/.327/.372 career line and currently squeezed off the active roster, Solak may find himself as a change-of-scenery candidate over the next couple months.

Carpenter, meanwhile, signed a non-roster deal during Spring Training. It marked a homecoming for the former TCU star, who had previously spent his entire career with the Cardinals. A three-time All-Star and two-time top ten finisher in MVP balloting in St. Louis, Carpenter saw his production turn sharply downwards by 2019. He had significant struggles in both 2020-21 and didn’t land an MLB roster spot after the Cards bought him out last fall.

The 36-year-old spoke over the offseason about the necessity to overhaul his hitting mechanics to rediscover his production at the plate. The early results have been encouraging, as Carpenter hit .275/.379/.613 and popped six homers in 21 games for Round Rock. Texas didn’t feel they had big league at-bats to offer, however, and the sides mutually agreed to part ways, relays Levi Weaver of the Athletic. It stands to reason there’ll be other teams willing to offer Carpenter a new minor league deal after his strong start for the Express.

Rangers Select Nick Snyder

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The Rangers announced they’ve selected the contract of right-hander Nick Snyder and recalled infielder Nick Solak. Righty Joe Barlow has been placed on the 10-day injured list with a blister on his right index finger, and lefty John King was transferred from the 10-day to the 60-day injured list to open a spot on the 40-man roster. Additionally, utilityman Charlie Culberson has been placed on the COVID-19 IL. Culberson has flu-like symptoms, relays Levi Weaver of the Athletic, but he has not tested positive for the coronavirus.

Snyder joined the Rangers as a 19th-round draft choice in 2017 out of a Florida junior college. He’s worked exclusively in relief as a professional, posting strong performances at every level up through Double-A. Snyder has compiled a 3.05 ERA across 105 career innings in the minors, punching out a strong 29.6% of batters faced while walking a tiny 6.7% of opponents. Entering this season, Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs noted that Snyder works in the 93-96 MPH range with his fastball. He’s been dominant with Double-A Frisco this season, working 16 1/3 frames of 1.65 ERA ball, but has very little in the way of Triple-A experience.

Solak began the year as Texas’ regular second baseman. After a strong start to the season, his bat tailed off considerably. He was optioned to Triple-A Round Rock in late July, carrying a subpar .225/.295/.353 line for the year. Solak has earned himself another look with a strong .353/.409/.459 showing over 93 plate appearances with the Express. The rebuilding Rangers figure to give the 26-year-old another regular look, as Solak was one of the more promising offensive players in the organization during his time as a prospect.

King’s injured list placement was backdated to July 7, and today’s move rules him out for sixty days from that date. He’ll be eligible to come back in early September after missing a couple months with inflammation in his throwing shoulder. The southpaw has been on a rehab assignment with Round Rock but recently felt some unexpected soreness, as Kenndi Landry of MLB.com wrote this week. The expectation still seems to be that King will make it back next month, and today’s transfer gives him a little extra recovery time while opening up 40-man roster space.

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