Rangers add Bass to spring bullpen competition

Right-hander Anthony Bass won a spot on the Texas Rangers’ Opening Day roster in 2015 as a non-roster invite to spring training, and he will get the same chance in the coming days.

The Rangers signed Bass to a minor-league deal Saturday and invited him to spring camp, which opens Wednesday with the first workout for pitchers and catchers.

Bass, who spent last season pitching in Japan, posted a 4.50 ERA in 33 appearances in 2015, most of them as the long reliever, before being traded to the Seattle Mariners as part of the Tom Wilhelmsen-for-Leonys Martin swap.

The Mariners quickly released Bass, who signed with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He went 8-8 with a 3.65 ERA in 37 games/14 starts, but 2-1 with a 0.65 ERA in 28 relief innings.

Left-hander Alex Claudio served as the Rangers’ long reliever most of last season, but he could be in for a more prominent role with fellow lefty Jake Diekman sidelined indefinitely. Bass becomes a candidate to become the long man, though he will work as a starter this spring so that he can get stretched out to pitch multiple innings.

This story was originally published February 11, 2017 at 11:55 AM with the headline "Rangers add Bass to spring bullpen competition."