The Texas Rangers acquired three positional players on Wednesday. They signed third baseman Todd Frazier of Toms River, New Jersey to a one year contract worth $5 million from the New York Mets according to ESPN.The Rangers also brought back catcher Robinson Chirinos of Punto Fijo, Venezuela and signed him to a one year contract worth $6.75 million from the Houston Astros according to Tom Ruminski of The Score, and acquired outfielder Sam Travis of Chicago, Illinois in a trade with the Boston Red Sox.
Frazier, who is 33 years old, is joining his fifth Major League Baseball team. In addition to the Mets, he has played for the Cincinnati Reds, Chicago White Sox and New York Yankees. Last season for the Mets, Frazier batted .251 with 21 home runs and 67 runs batted in during 447 at bats. In 133 games and 499 plate appearances, Frazier scored 63 runs, collected 112 hits, 19 doubles, two triples, one stolen base, 40 walks and 198 total bases. He had an on base percentage of .329 and slugging percentage of .443. Frazier was a two-time all-star with the Reds in 2014 and 2015.
Chirinos, is returning to the Rangers after playing with Texas from 2013 to 2018. Last season in Houston, Chirinos batted .238 with 17 home runs and 58 runs batted in during 366 at bats. In 114 games and 437 plate appearances, Chirinos scored 57 runs, collected 87 hits, 22 doubles, one triple, one stolen base, 51 walks and 162 total bases. He had an on base percentage of .347 and a slugging percentage of .443.
The fact that Chirinos is making more money than Frazier is not that surprising. Even though Frazier had a slightly better offensive season, third basemen generally have much stronger offensive seasons than catchers. To get a catcher with the type of power Chirinos brings is valuable indeed. In addition to playing for the Rangers and Astros, Chirinos has also played for the Tampa Bay Rays.
Travis meanwhile was acquired from Boston for left handed pitcher Jeffrey Springs. In 2019, Travis batted .215 with six home runs and 16 runs batted in during 144 at bats. In 59 games and 157 plate appearances, Travis scored 17 runs, collected 31 hits, four doubles, one triple, two stolen bases, 11 walks, a .274 on base percentage, a .382 slugging percentage, 55 total bases and a sacrifice fly.
Expect Chirinos to be the everyday catcher, Frazier to be the everyday third baseman and Travis to be the backup outfielder in Texas. In 2019, the Rangers finished third in the American League West with a record of 78 wins and 84 losses.
