DALLAS — Left field was something of a black hole for the Texas Rangers in 2021.
The team finished 29th out of the 30 teams in production from their left fielders with an anemic .616 OPS. The poor performance from the position wasn’t on the shoulders of just one player, either. The Rangers had a revolving door in left that they couldn’t solve.
Texas signed local product David Dahl to try to be the answer last winter, but Dahl flopped with only a .569 OPS in 63 games before he was released in August. The Rangers’ best option in left field last season ended up being Willie Calhoun, who slashed a meager .250/.310/.381, but was a liability with the glove in the outfield. Calhoun is now expected to get the bulk of his at-bats at DH in 2022.
In addition to Dahl and Calhoun, the Rangers also tried Jason Martin, DJ Peters and Eli White in left field, but none mustered an OPS above .645 and only Calhoun and White now remain with the organization this spring.
Before the spending spree to upgrade the middle infield in December, left field was the clear area of need for the Rangers but one that they ultimately chose not to address with another big free agent signing.
Instead, Texas pulled something of a rabbit out of their hats and opted to sign 32-year-old former infielder Brad Miller to be the left-handed hitting regular in what will likely be a platoon with Nick Solak, Calhoun, White, and others.
Hitters such as Nick Castellanos, Kyle Schwarber, Andrew McCutchen, and Jorge Soler were available to tackle the Rangers’ shortcomings in left field but Texas appeared finished with handing out high dollar deals on the other side of the lockout after spending over half a billion dollars to upgrade the team headlined by the signings of infielders Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, and pitcher Jon Gray.
Superstar Japanese outfielder Seiya Suzuki could have been a special case signee to lock down the position for years to come, but he chose to sign with the Chicago Cubs and left the Rangers to look at cheaper options.
So, it’s Miller who landed the job on a deal that guarantees $10 million over the next two seasons. A longtime infielder who broke into the majors with the Seattle Mariners back in 2013, Miller has played in 73 games in the outfield during his nine big league seasons, including 27 starts in left field.
Expect that number to increase as Miller’s career .780 OPS against right-handed pitching – and .842 OPS in 2021 – will give him ample opportunities to find himself in the lineup. Miller hit 20 home runs in 140 games for the Philadelphia Phillies in 2021, primarily at first base.
Meanwhile, Solak, who lost his job at second base last season and then permanently when the Rangers signed Semien, will look to transition to the outfield to garner at-bats when a lefty is on the mound. Though 27-year-old Solak has yet to have a breakout season in the big leagues, he has slashed a serviceable .266/.354/.374 against left-handers in his three seasons.
Solak, like Miller, is an infielder by trade who will likely see more time in the outfield than at any point in his career. Solak has played in the outfield in the majors, however, as he started 36 games in the outfield – including 23 in left field – for Texas in 2020.
There is one player still available who has been linked to the Rangers if they decide the left field platoon isn’t panning out how they had hoped. 29-year-old free agent Michael Conforto has yet to sign and the former New York Mets All-Star sports a career .824 OPS. There are roadblocks, however.
While signing Conforto could be seen as an opportunity to massively improve at another spot in the lineup, any deal before July would cost the Rangers a third draft pick after he was extended a qualifying offer this winter. Texas has already sacrificed a second and third round pick for the Seager and Semien signings.
Considering the fact that Opening Day is just days away, and Conforto hasn’t signed, it’s likely that he’s priced himself out of range of anything the Rangers have left in the budget after they splurged over the winter.
For now, expect to see Brad Miller in left field on days when opponents send a right-handed pitcher to the mound and, if he shows that he can take to regular work in the outfield and improve at the plate, the second half of the platoon should be Nick Solak’s to lose.
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