The Rangers added yet another veteran to their outfield-designated hitter mix with the signing of Andrew McCutchen.

He’s a former MVP who logged twelve years with the Pirates, making the all-star team for five straight years from 2011 to 2015, a five-year period where he was elite, batting .302, with a .396 on-base percentage, and a .905 OPS. His OPS+ during that stretch was 158. 

McCutchen was a legend in Pittsburgh, leading them to their last post-season run from 2013 to 2015. But like every great Pirate, he would leave Pittsburgh for another team willing to invest in talent.

He may not be the Andrew McCutchen of his glory years, but he can still hit left-handed pitching, something Evan Carter simply cannot do, and Joc Pederson isn’t very good at.

The Rangers had signed Mark Cahna earlier in the off-season to fill this role as well. You’d have to think only one of the two would make the team, if either do at all. 

But the thirty-nine-year-old corner outfielder is at the tail end of a nearly hall-of-fame level career. If he has anything left in the tank, the Rangers could sure use it. 

*****

Texas versus San Diego, 3:10