Texas Rangers decline Alex Rios’ 2015 option
The Texas Rangers have declined Alex Rios‘ $13.5 million team option for 2015. Instead the Rangers opted to buyout his contract for $1 million, sending the outfielder on to the free agent market.
Rios, 33, has been in the league for 11 seasons, spending four and a half of them with the Toronto Blue Jays where he was a two-time All-Star in 2006 and 2007, before being claimed off waivers by the Chicago White Sox in 2009.
As recently as 2012 Rios hit a career high 25 home runs, and put up another career high .304 batting average, for the White Sox. Despite his career highs in 2012, Chicago traded him to the Texas Rangers in the middle of the 2013 season for a player to be named later. That player ended up being Leury Garcia.
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It isn’t a complete shock that the Rangers declined to pick up Rios’ option as in his time with the club he hit just 10 home runs, just four in 2014. He did however put up his best slashline for the Rangers, since his All-Star years with the Blue Jays, .280/.312/.414.
He posted a .280 batting average in the second half of the 2013 season and in 131 games for the Rangers in 2014. Rios did struggle with some minor injuries causing his numbers to decrease in the second half of 2014.
However, injuries seemed to be part of the Rangers’ luck in 2014, as they were plagued with injuries from losing starting pitcher Derek Holland to a knee injury prior to spring training, then touted prospect Jurickson Profar in late March and the list continued to grow as the season progressed all the way on through September when ace Yu Darvish was shut down for the season.
Of course the Rangers choosing to decline Rios’ option doesn’t necessarily mean that he won’t be back in Texas in 2015, but if he were it would be for a lesser annual salary.
Plus there are still quite a few teams who will be looking to add a proven right-handed bat to their lineup and who will be interested in a healthy Rios. Rios will likely find a home before the 2015 season arrives, it just won’t be with the Rangers paying him $13.5 million.