Mark Canha Has Clear, Narrow Path to Make Rangers Opening Day Roster

The Texas Rangers signed Mark Canha to a minor league deal, but his new boss believes he has a path to the opening day roster.

Kansas City Royals left fielder Mark Canha. | Peter Aiken-Imagn Images

SURPRISE, Ariz. — When it came to outfield depth for the non-roster invitees for the Texas Rangers, the list was remarkably thin.

The only two players listed were a pair of prospects — Trevor Hauver and Aaron Zavala. While the Rangers look set in the outfield on the 40-man roster, they opted to acquire a bit of protection by signing Mark Canha to a minor league deal on Sunday.

But it isn't an empty signing. The 37-year-old outfielder has a wealth of Major League experience and before injuries derailed him last season, he had a solid track record at the plate. He's now one of a handful of non-roster invitees that has a pathway to claiming a Major League job with Texas. Rangers manager Skip Schumaker outlined that path after Canha joined the team.

How Mark Canha Makes the Rangers

Kansas City Royals hitter Mark Canha. | William Purnell-Imagn Images

The path Schumacher laid out was clear, but narrow. Canha must play a certain role in certain situations and make the team as a backup outfielder.

“His path to making this team would be hitting left-handers and being kind of an option off the bench as a corner outfielder,” Schumaker said.

He also said the lineup has plenty of left-handed hitters, and adding Canha to the list of potential outfielders gives them a right-hander to add to the overall mix.

Historically he's still a better hitter against right-handed pitching than left-handed pitching, but not by much. He has a career .250 average against right-handers and a .244 average against left-handers. The power numbers split that way, too. He has 72 home runs and 315 RBI against right-handers and 49 home runs and 150 RBI against left-handers.

Texas only has 6 outfielders on its 40-man roster. If the season started now, Alejandro Osuna would probably be the odd man out if Texas carried five outfielders. In that case, it means Canha would have to beat out either Sam Haggerty or Michael Helman for an opening day spot. If Texas must deal with an injury or two, that could open a spot as well.

Canha also must prove he still has something in his bat. Last season in Kansas City was awful. He batted .212 in 46 games, spent two stints on the injured list and was released on Aug. 21.

Historically he’s been much better. For his career he has a slash of .248/.346/.409 with 121 home runs and 465 RBI. If he can recapture that career slash in spring training, he can force the Rangers into some intriguing decisions before they head to Philadelphia for opening day on March 26.