Rangers announce roster moves ahead of Tuesday's road trip opener
Club promotes INF/OF Dustin Harris, who is seeking his MLB Debut
Oakland, Calif. — The Texas Rangers announced the following roster moves prior to Tuesday night’s series opener against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland Coliseum:
- Right-handed pitcher Josh Sborz activated from 15-day Injured List.
- Outfielder Dustin Harris (#38) recalled from Triple-A Round Rock.
- Infielder Matt Duffy (#9) contract selected from Triple-A Round Rock.
- Infielder/outfielder Ezequiel Duran placed on Paternity Leave List.
- Third baseman Josh Jung placed on 10-day Injured List with right wrist tendinitis.
- Right-handed pitcher Tyler Mahle transferred from 15-day to 60-day Injured List.
- Left-handed pitcher Walter Pennington optioned to minor leagues.
Sborz, 30, has a 2-1 record with a 3.38 ERA (6 ER/16.0 IP) and 4 walks/16 strikeouts over 16 relief appearances for Texas this season. He has been limited due to three stints on the Injured List: April 7-24 (right rotator cuff strain), May 9-July 4 (right rotator cuff strain), and Aug. 8-Sept. 23 (right shoulder fatigue). He made 3 relief appearances last week for Double-A Frisco, posting 2.2 shutout innings while allowing one hit and no walks with 3 strikeouts. He last pitched on Friday vs. Midland: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 SO). Sborz's last outing with Texas was on Aug. 7 vs. Houston (0.2 IP, 0 R).
Harris, 25, has batted .272/.358/.391/.749 (132-486) with 10 home runs, 3 triples, 22 doubles, and 53 RBI in 131 games with Round Rock (AAA) in 2024, marking starts defensively in center field (62 G), left field (45 G), third base (12 G), designated hitter (4 G), and first base (2 G). The Land O’ Lakes, Fla. native was originally an 11th-round selection by Oakland in the 2019 MLB Draft and has a .284 (539-1901) batting average over five minor league seasons.
Duffy, 33, has batted .218/.296/.280/.576 (42-193) in 56 games this season for Round Rock after he was a non-roster invitee Rangers Major League camp this spring. The Long Beach, Calif. native has spent eight MLB seasons with San Francisco (2014-16), Tampa Bay (2016, 2018-19), Chicago-NL (2021), Los Angeles-AL (2022), and Kansas City (2023).
Duran, 25, has batted .253 (65-257) with 3 home runs, 11 doubles, and 20 RBI over 89 games/72 starts spanning two stints with Texas this season (Opening Day-June 25, July 29-current). The right-handed batter and thrower has appeared at every position other than pitcher and catcher in 2024.
The 26-year-old Jung has slashed .264/.298/.421/.719 (47-178) with 7 home runs, one triple, 5 doubles, and 16 RBI in 46 games for Texas in 2024. This will be his second stint on the Injured List this season, as he also missed 102 games from April 2-July 29 with a right wrist fracture.
Mahle (rhymes with ‘rally’), who turns 30 years old on September 29, has gone 0-1, 4.97 ERA (7 ER/12.2 IP) and 10 strikeouts in 3 appearances/starts for the Rangers this season. He has endured multiple Injured List stints in 2024 due to recovery from right elbow surgery (Opening Day-August 5) and right shoulder tightness (August 20-current). The Newport Beach, Calif. native agreed to a two-year Major League contract with Texas on December 14, 2023.
Pennington has a 1-0 record and 3.00 ERA over 16 games/1 start in his first career MLB action this season with Kansas City and Texas.
Following today’s transactions, the Rangers remain at the 40-man limit on the club’s Major League roster, along with six players on the 60-day Injured List: Evan Carter, Carson Coleman, Jon Gray, Tyler Mahle, Corey Seager, Cole Winn.