Asdrubal Cabrera Signs With Texas Rangers
Infielder Asdrubal Cabrera is on the move again as he heads to the Texas Rangers on a one-year, $3.5 million deal, pending a physical. Cabrera has the ability to play all over the infield but over the course of his 12-year career, he has primarily played at the shortstop position, appearing in 1078 of his 1529 games from the spot. With Texas, the switch-hitter is expected to play at third base. At the age of 33, Cabrera showed that he can still play during his time with the New York Mets and following his trade to the Philadelphia Phillies. Over the course of last season, Cabrera had a .262 batting average while totaling up 23 home runs and 75 RBIs. His veteran presence with the Phillies helped lead a playoff push that fell short but the 33-year-old's versatility in the infield saw him play in 49 games where he hit .228 with five home runs and 17 RBIs in Philly.
Throughout the entirety of his 12 years in the league, Cabrera has a career .269 batting average while playing for the Cleveland Indians, Washington Nationals, Tampa Bay Rays, New York Mets, and Philadelphia Phillies. His best year came back in 2011 with the Indians when he made his first All-Star Game appearance in a season where set a career high in home runs with 25, runs batted in by driving in 92 baserunners and playing in 151 games. Cabrera also won the Silver Slugger Award that season and followed up the 2011 campaign with another All-Star appearance in 2012.
In addition to his presence at the plate, Cabrera's work in the field has been equally as impressive. Playing at a variety of infield positions, Cabrera has committed 128 errors over the course of his 12-year career and has a .979 fielding percentage to go along with it. He also recorded an unassisted triple play way back in 2008 against the Toronto Blue Jays which was just the 14th unassisted triple play in the history of the MLB. Although he has made quite a few spectacular plays in the field, Cabrera still does not have a Gold Glove to add to the collection of accolades he has received in his career.
As for what he brings to the Rangers, Cabrera provides veteran leadership to the hot corner of the diamond. With the retirement of Adrian Beltre, the next man up on the depth chart at third base for Texas was 27-year-old Patrick Wisdom who has just 50 at-bats of MLB experience to his name from his time spent with the St. Louis Cardinals last season. The Rangers are a young team all across the diamond and bringing in a mix of veterans is sure to help with the growth of those younger players on the team. Last season, Texas finished last in the AL West at 67-95 and while the playoffs may not be attainable this upcoming season, they are likely to take a step in the right direction.
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