9:41pm: Canha has now been granted his release, per Grant.
8:45pm: Veteran first baseman/outfielder Mark Canha has asked to be released from his minor league deal with the Rangers, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. Canha is hoping to pursue big league deals with other clubs.
Canha, 37, signed a minor league deal with the Rangers in February. He had a solid spring, slashing .286/.318/.500, but didn’t break camp with the club. The Rangers effectively had a battle for their final roster spot between Canha and Andrew McCutchen, but the latter won out.
Canha had an opt-out in his deal at the end of spring training and could have returned to free agency at that point, but he and the Rangers agreed to an arrangement that worked for both of them. As reported by Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News at the end of March, Canha preferred not to go on the road with a minor league club. He agreed to stay with the Rangers in extended spring training in Surprise, Arizona. Since his full-time home is in nearby Scottsdale, he could stay with his family while maintaining game readiness by facing minor leaguers.
That allowed the club to hold onto some veteran depth in case an injury popped up, but it hasn’t. Almost three weeks have passed since that arrangement was made and, in the interim, the Rangers have been fortunate in terms of health on the position player side. Cody Freeman has been on the injured list all year due to a lower back fracture suffered back in February. No other position player has joined him on the IL since the season began.
Despite the health, there are some gaps in the performance. McCutchen isn’t out to a great start, working primarily as the short side of a designated hitter platoon with Joc Pederson, in addition to occasional outfield work. It’s a small sample of 28 plate appearances but he has struck out 12 times, a 42.9% clip, while his one walk is a 3.6% pace. His .222/.250/.407 line translates to an 84 wRC+.
Theoretically, Canha could be subbed in for McCutchen in that role, since he is also a veteran righty bat. But whether Canha can provide more than McCutchen is a fair question. With the Royals last year, Canha slashed .212/.272/.265, production which translated to a 49 wRC+. He was released in August and didn’t sign anywhere else in the final few weeks of the season. As mentioned, he had a decent spring but it’s hard to say what form he is in now since he hasn’t been playing in official game action.
If the Rangers grant Canha his release, it’s hard to see him landing an immediate major league offer, based on his most recent big league action and the fact that he hasn’t been playing in official games for a few weeks. He would almost certainly receive some minor league offers but it’s unclear if his appetite for riding the bus has increased in the past few weeks.
Photo courtesy of Matt Kartozian, Imagn Images
