(NOTE: The Rangers have also traded for Jonathan Lucroy and Jeremy Jeffress of the Milwaukee Brewers. Additional story forthcoming)
The Rangers have acquired DH/OF Carlos Beltran from the New York Yankees in exchange for last year’s first round draft pick (and #4 overall pick) Dillon Tate, and minor league pitchers Erik Swanson and Nick Green, according to multiple sources.
Beltran, 39, has had a resurgent year in New York, hitting .305 with 22 home runs, a .546 Slugging Percentage, and an OPS of .890. He immediately becomes the Rangers’ team leader in home runs and slugging percentage. In fact, as noted
but perhaps more importantly, he is hitting .351 against left-handed pitchers, a source of need for the Rangers lineup that includes Mitch Moreland, Rougned Odor, Shin-Soo Choo, Nomar Mazara, and Jurickson Profar, who is a switch-hitter, but has hit much better against right-handed pitchers.
Beltran has been in the league since 1998, making the postseason five times with four different teams.
The Rangers will be Beltran’s seventh team, which leads to an interesting stat, noted by @AlexPutterman here.
The Rangers will be Carlos Beltran's seventh team. Of the 100 players with 70 or more career WAR on B-Ref, only two played for more teams.
— Alex Putterman (@AlexPutterman) August 1, 2016
Tate was the consolation prize for the Rangers’ awful 2014 season, a season that – until the final weeks – had the Rangers in position to make the #1 overall pick in the draft. But when Ron Washington stepped down and Tim Bogar took over as interim manager, the team went 14-8 to close out the season, dropping them to #4.
Picks #1-3 of that draft? Dansby Swanson, Alex Bregman and Brendan Rodgers.
Tate pitched just six games in 2015, sporting an ERA of 1.00 between Spokane and Hickory, but has struggled this year in Hickory, going 3-3 with a 5.40 ERA. Still, there is some high-end to hope on with Tate.
Erik Swanson has a career record of 8-6 with an ERA of 3.98 in 2-and-change years in the minor leagues, as high as AA. Nick Green has a career ERA of 5.15 in two years, no higher level than Short-Season A Spokane.
If the price for a 39-year old DH who will be a free agent seems high, consider this: Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports that the Yankees will be paying half of the remainder of Beltran's salary this season. The Rangers hope that the addition of Beltran to the lineup makes it worth the Dillon Tate risk. Flags fly forever, after all.
