Texas Rangers sign Yovani Gallardo to minor league deal

The Texas Rangers have signed pitcher Yovani Gallardo to a minor league deal, the team announced today. The 32 year old righthander was released earlier this week by the Cincinnati Reds.

The Rangers acquired Gallardo prior to the 2015 season, sending Marcos Diplan, Corey Knebel and Luis Sardinas to the Milwaukee Brewers for Gallardo and cash. Gallardo was a vital part of the Rangers’ division title winning club that year, putting up a 3.42 ERA in 184 IP over 33 starts, but there were red flags that resulted in the Rangers opting to let him leave as a free agent rather than make a concerted effort to re-sign him. Gallardo signed with the Orioles, and put up a 5.42 ERA in 23 starts in 2016, then was dealt to the Mariners in the 2016-17 offseason, where he put up a 5.72 ERA in 22 starts and 6 relief appearances for the M’s.

Gallardo signed with the Brewers this offseason, but was released late in camp, and then signed with the Reds. He appeared in 2.1 IP over 3 relief appearances for Cincinnati, giving up 8 runs on 8 hits and 4 walks for a 30.86 ERA prior to being released.

The Fort Worth native is apparently going to pitch for AAA Round Rock, where he most likely will be rotation depth. Gallardo hasn’t been good for a couple of years now, and while one can hope that he can re-capture some of his old form with the Express, this is most likely a situation where, if he is in the majors for Texas, the season has gone even more wrong than it has already.