Texas Rangers Trying Out Newly-Signed Slugger at First Base This Spring

The Texas Rangers are trying out some different things in Spring Training. Having their newly-signed designated hitter play first base is one of them.

The Rangers signed Joc Pederson to a two-year deal with an option to part ways after the first season.

Pederson joins Texas after spending last year with the Arizona Diamondbacks. In his one season in the desert, the slugger slashed .275/.393/.515 with a career-high OPS of .908. Along with that, he slugged 23 home runs and collected 64 RBI in 132 games played.

However, he did not play a single inning in the field for Arizona.

The Rangers signed the left-handed hitter with hopes he can provide some power from the DH position. Heading into the season, he is slated to be their starting designated hitter.

Per Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News, there is some thought of letting him play the field, though, specifically first base.

When playing a position, the lefty has mainly been an outfielder. However, the Rangers do not need another player out there. Wyatt Langford is poised to have a solid season, Adolis Garcia made some adjustments and Evan Carter will be the everyday center fielder.

Additionally, Texas has Leody Taveras for some depth while Ezequiel Duran can play the corners.

While speaking with Grant and other reporters, manager Bruce Bochy expressed some confidence in Pederson's ability to play first base.

"He hasn’t been over there very much, so I imagine he’s got a little rust on him. But he’s taken some ground balls already and we’ll make a call later. We think it’s going to work," Bochy said.

The 32-year-old has played just 23 career games at first base. He has made eight errors in his time at the position, which gives him a low .962 fielding percentage. If he is going to play there, the Rangers will need him to make some more plays.

Still, there is an opening for Pederson.

Texas traded away their starting first baseman from a year ago, so that left a hole in the lineup. However, they did acquire Jake Burger, and he will be the starter in front of Pederson.

Burger is coming off a season in which he slashed .250/.301/.460 with 29 home runs in 137 games played for the Miami Marlins. Defensively, the right-handed hitter played 462.1 innings at first base for the Marlins and he made just two errors. He is a better defender than Pederson, so it is no surprise that he is going to be the starter.

The Rangers are also only inclined to use Pederson against right-handed pitching. The 11th-round pick has not hit lefties well in his career. 194 of his 209 career home runs have come off righties and his strikeout rate is significantly lower in those at-bats.

Texas aren't expecting Pederson to play a lot of innings at the position, but having him to backup Burger would help the team out.

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