Texas Rangers’ 6-player swap with Tampa Bay nets first baseman Nate Lowe, this TCU ex
So much for this being a quiet offseason for the Texas Rangers.
They made a six-player trade Thursday afternoon with the American League-champion Tampa Bay Rays, acquiring first baseman Nate Lowe and two prospects for a trio of lower-level prospects.
The plan is for Lowe to be the Opening Day first baseman, president of baseball operations Jon Daniels said, raising more doubts about Ronald Guzman’s future with the team.
The Rangers sent two of their top-30 prospects, first baseman/outfielder Heriberto Hernandez and infielder Osleivis Basabe, and outfielder Alexander Ovalles to the Rays for Lowe, former TCU first baseman Jake Gruenther and a player to be named.
“I told him to expect competition but we made this deal anticipating he would win the job and be our first baseman,” Daniels said. “Offensively with the approach and power, he has a good combination of skills. I think he is an upgrade at that spot, someone we can grow with.
Lowe said he is excited for the opportunity after being somewhat blocked with the Rays, either with personnel or with their philosophy. A left-handed hitter, Lowe hasn’t been given many opportunities to face lefties in his two seasons in majors as the Rays favored a platoon.
He was a .287 hitter in the minors against lefties, though with less power. He’s only a .231 (9 for 46) hitter with two home runs early in his MLB career and had only 15 at-bats against lefties in 2020, when he batted .133.
“I love left-handed pitchers,” said Lowe, 25. “I’ve come up hitting lefties my whole life, and I really enjoy it. It will be nice to get the opportunity again to do it in Texas.”
Guzman has been given more chances than Lowe, but hasn’t produced anywhere close to what he did in his final two seasons in the minors. Guzman has hit 30 homers in 721 at-bats over parts of three seasons but has only a .230 batting average and a .308 on-base percentage.
While terrific defensively, Guzman was on the wrong end of a tough choice.
“We always have to make decisions,” Daniels said. “We’re mindful of Ronald’s talent. We’re not certainly suggesting he’s reached his potential, but quite frankly we had to make a decision. We like Nate as an upgrade for the club, and that’s what we chose to do. Ronald’s still on the roster, and we’ll play that out and see where it goes.”
The Rangers made another acquisition earlier Thursday, selecting righty reliever Brett de Geus in the Rule 5 draft off the Los Angeles Dodgers’ roster. He receives a spot on the 40-man roster and must remain on the active roster all season or else be returned to the Dodgers.
This story was originally published December 10, 2020 at 2:38 PM.
