Rangers Turn to Rowdy Tellez to Bring More Slugging to Struggling Lineup

ARLINGTON — Rowdy Tellez admitted to some puttering around the house after the Seattle Mariners designated him for assignment on June 20.

Sure, he worked out on his own, taking batting practice and infield while the Mariners decided what to do with him. Six days later, they released him. He and his agent spent the next several days fielding offers.

The Texas Rangers won. They had two things on their side — need and family.

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“It was the urgency,” Tellez said of his calls with the Rangers before he signed a minor league deal on July 5. “They were like, ‘Hey we want you now.’”

In 24 hours, Tellez was on his way to Round Rock. In 48 hours, he was playing in a game.

It didn’t hurt that Express manager Doug Davis is Tellez’s father-in-law, something that Rangers manager Bruce Bochy let out of the bag during his pre-game session with the media.

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Bochy didn’t know Tellez and only met him for the first time during the Rangers’ practice session on Thursday at Globe Life Field.

“He looks like a guy that’s a lot of fun to be around,” Bochy said, admitting that he got the “inside scoop” on Tellez from Davis.

His time with Round Rock was limited to four games. He slashed .333/.375/.800 with a 1.175 OPS with two home runs and four RBI.

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He wasn’t certain how long he would stay at Round Rock. But, when Texas moved first baseman Jake Burger back to the injured list earlier this week, it paved the way for the 6-foot-4, 270-pound Tellez to head back to first base.

“[Triple-A] was just about getting my swing back and getting back on the field,” he said. “You take three weeks and you’re not playing. So they just wanted me to get ready. I’ve only played one position my whole career. So, if I can’t do it by now then we’ve got some problems.”

Tellez started at first base for the Rangers on Friday and went 0-for-3 at the plate in a 2-0 Rangers win. Against right-handed pitching, the left-handed hitting Tellez figures to get the start — at least until Burger returns.

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He joined the Mariners to start the season and in 62 games he slashed .208/.249/.434 with 11 home runs and 27 RBI. Even with the awful slash line, he has more home runs that all but four Rangers and is tied with Burger.

Tellez has produced big numbers before. In 2022 with the Milwaukee Brewers, he hit 35 home runs. He’s hit 13 home runs in each of the last two seasons.

The Rangers need all the slug they can get as they try to claw back into the American League wild card picture. He has limited experience at Globe Life Field, where he entered Friday’s game with 28 career at-bats across four seasons.

The bad news? He has just five career hits. The good news? Four have come this season, all with the Mariners.

Whenever he hits his first home run at Globe Life, it will be his first career home run at the park.

“The numbers say so, so hopefully that translates here,” Tellez said.

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