Rangers sign Jose Leclerc to 4-year extension

The Texas Rangers today announced that the club has signed right-handed pitcher José Leclerc to a four-year contract extension through 2022 with club options for the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Financial terms were not disclosed, per club policy.

The 25-year-old reliever was selected the 2018 Rangers Pitcher of the Year after posting a 2-3 record with 12 saves and a 1.56 ERA (10 ER/57.2 IP) over 59 appearances out of the bullpen last season, setting career highs in most categories in his third Major League campaign. He held opponents to the lowest batting average (.126) of any MLB reliever last season, ranking among American League relief leaders in opponents OPS (2nd, .431), ERA (2nd, 1.56), WHIP (3rd, 0.85), and strikeouts per 9.0 innings (7th, 13.27). He finished the year by converting each of his final 12 save opportunities along with a 21.0-inning scoreless streak.

Leclerc’s .1257 opponents' batting average in 2018 was the 4th-lowest by a reliever in MLB history (minimum 150 batters faced) behind only Cincinnati’s Aroldis Chapman in 2014 (.121), California’s Andy Messersmith in 1968 (.124), and Atlanta’s Craig Kimbrel in 2012 (.1256). His 1.56 ERA was the 3rd-lowest relief figure in Rangers history to only Neal Cotts (1.11) and Joe Nathan (1.39) in 2013. For the 2018 season Leclerc whiffed 38.1% (85 of 223) of all batters faced and his 12 saves from August 4 through the end of the season ranked tied for 3rd in both the AL and MLB.

Since the beginning of his second stint with Texas in 2016 (Sept. 4, 2016), Leclerc has held opponents to a .142/.284/.231/.515 slash line, ranking among MLB’s top 4 in opponent batting average, slugging, and OPS in that span (minimum 100.0 innings). He has spent his entire career in the Texas organization since signing at the age of 16 out of his native Dominican Republic.