Rangers bring back Napoli to face lefties for playoff push

Mike Napoli is returning to the Texas Rangers, who in two weeks’ time have gone from realistically looking toward 2016 and beyond to a full-on go for the 2015 postseason.

Napoli was acquired Friday evening along with cash from the Boston Red Sox for a player to be named or cash. The plan was to get him on a flight to the Pacific Northwest on Friday night in time for him to start Saturday afternoon at Safeco Field, but he couldn’t make a flight and will depart Detroit on Saturday morning.

If he makes it in time, he would face Seattle Mariners left-hander Mike Montgomery and start to fill the Rangers’ need for a right-handed-hitting threat against lefties. The acquisition also is a sign that the Rangers’ front office, with the financial backing from ownership, believes the club can make the postseason.

They entered Friday 2 1/2 games out of the second wild-card spot and 5 1/2 games behind first-place Houston after sweeping three games from the Astros to open the week. While the trades for Cole Hamels, Jake Diekman and Sam Dyson were as much about future seasons as this one, Napoli, a free agent after the season, is all about 2015.

“We’ve always been of the mindset that we have a real chance to win this year,” general manager Jon Daniels said. “Those other guys are three-, four- and five-year controllable players, and Mike’s contract expires after the end of year.

“This move is about 2015, and he fills a need for us. We’re excited to have him back on board.”

Napoli will be part of a platoon at first base with the lefty-hitting Mitch Moreland and can also spell the lefty-hitting Prince Fielder at designated hitter against lefties who pose an unfavorable matchup to the Rangers’ lone All-Star this season.

Though Napoli was a catcher in 2011 and 2012 for the Rangers, a career-threatening degenerative hip condition kept him from catching with Boston. He served as the Red Sox’s emergency catcher and will also have that role with the Rangers.

Chris Gimenez and Bobby Wilson, who caught Cole Hamels in a late game Friday night, will continue to share the catching duties until Robinson Chirinos (left shoulder) and Carlos Corporan (left thumb) are healthy enough to come off the disabled list.

Left-handed pitchers are 23-19 against Rangers lineups that have been bogged down with lefty hitters. Though Napoli is batting only .207 overall and .229 against lefties, he has seven of his 13 homers and an .845 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) this season against portsiders.

He’s a career. 274 hitter against lefties with a .904 OPS. The Astros and second-place Los Angeles Angels have two lefties apiece in their rotations, three of them All-Stars.

“Nap’s a guy who has always hit lefties and has continued to be very productive against lefties this year, and that was primary in our thought process,” Daniels said. “Production against lefties is an area that we’ve struggled with. To have a guy come here, a guy who we know and know he’s going to fit our culture, and gives us a presence and some power against left-handed pitching, which we’ve struggled against, just made a lot of sense for us.”

The Red Sox won the World Series in 2013, Napoli’s first year there, and re-signed him after the season to a two-year deal worth $32 million. The cash the Red Sox are sending will help cover the rest of his $16 million contract for 2015.

The Rangers will likely send the Red Sox cash to cover their end of the trade.

The Rangers entered a three-game series against Seattle on Friday riding a four-game winning streak, with seven wins in their past eight games, 11 in their past 15 and with Hamels on the mound for his second start since a July 31 trade that included Diekman for Matt Harrison and five prospects.

The only loss was Hamels’ debut Aug. 1 when the bullpen couldn’t hold a three-run lead, but the hot stretch started July 29 as news broke that a trade with Philadelphia was imminent.

The Rangers were also coming off a 21-5 loss to the New York Yankees.

“I would say both of those have a lot to do with it,” Moreland said. “It’s almost embarrassing when you lose a game like that. It kind of rubbed us the wrong way, and we wanted to get back out there and prove what we could so. Also, getting some guys like Cole and Diekman and Dyson, those guys have come in and made an impact. It gives you a little pick-me-up as well.”

Napoli is expected to do the same against lefties in a move that is about making the playoff this season.

This story was originally published August 7, 2015 at 9:30 PM with the headline "Rangers bring back Napoli to face lefties for playoff push."