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The Texas Rangers have traded 24 year old left handed pitcher Andrew Faulkner to the Baltimore Orioles for a player to be named later or cash, the team has announced.
Wow. This is a surprising move...there's no apparent compelling need to open up a 40 man roster spot, which is usually why you dump a 40 man roster member for basically nothing. But the Andrew Faulkner situation has been puzzling for almost a year now...after a strong finish to 2015 on the major league roster, Faulkner started 2016 in the major league bullpen as the second lefty. He struggled early, bounced up and down, and ended up spending most of the year with AAA Round Rock.
This spring, Faulkner was lifted from a spring game suddenly for what was reported to be lightheadedness, and soon thereafter was a surprisingly early cut. The Rangers were reportedly working extensively with him to overhaul his mechanics.
A disappointing ending to the 2011 14th rounder’s stint with the Rangers. Hopefully he gets things back on track with the Orioles.