ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Jarred Kelenic is on his fourth team in four seasons, appearing in the big leagues for a second franchise this year after joining each club on a minor league contract.
If that sounds a bit like a 30-something journeyman, it's not. Kelenic made his first start for the Texas Rangers in left field against San Diego on Saturday, a little less than a month before his 27th birthday.
“I mean, I broke into the league at 25,” Rangers
manager Skip Schumaker said. “And I was not nearly as talented as him.”
In 2021, Kelenic was one of the top prospects in baseball when he debuted for Seattle as a 21-year-old about 2 1/2 years after he was the primary piece for the Mariners in a trade that sent Robinson Canó and Edwin Diaz to the New York Mets.
Kelenic, the sixth overall pick in the 2018 amateur draft, hit .168 in his first 500 at-bats over two seasons with the Mariners, then was coming off a solid third year with Seattle when he was traded to Atlanta before the 2024 season.
After hitting .222 over two years with the Braves, Kelenic signed a minor league deal with an invitation to spring training with the Chicago White Sox this year and began the year with Triple-A Charlotte.
The next big-league call came in late April, but the White Sox designated him for assignment with a .226 average over 19 games, most of them starts in right field.
Rinse and repeat with the Rangers. Kelenic signed a minor league deal on June 2, hit .340 with three homers and 11 RBIs in 13 games at Triple-A Round Rock and found himself in the majors again.
“I think those expectations are tough, especially as a young player, but I still believe in the talent and the player that I can be each and every day,” Kelenic said. “I haven’t lost any faith in that.”
The promotion of Kelenic on Friday had the look of a shake-up for an offense that has underperformed and dealt with plenty of injuries.
The Rangers sent down second baseman Josh Smith, who hasn't been in the minors since 2022 and is coming off a stint on the injured list that included wrist and glute injuries and a bout with viral meningitis.
The change offered Schumaker a chance to discuss with Kelenic the latest chance for the Wisconsin native to make things click in the big leagues.
“We definitely talked through that,” Schumaker said. “There’s a lot that was probably on his plate early on. So for him to kind of evolve into the person he is now and see things in a different way, and perspective is always great and it has helped him. I think he’s in a really good spot right now.”
Three years ago, Kelenic spent almost two months on the injured list after breaking his foot kicking a water cooler in the dugout following a ninth-inning strikeout with Seattle. Count that among the lessons of experience as he tries again.
“I think it really stems down to the game plan for the pitcher that you’re facing,” Kelenic said. “I think that before, I got to the big leagues without really understanding the importance of a plan and was never really taught the importance of a plan. It’s tough to not have a plan. And it actually makes you ride that emotional roller coaster even more because you have nothing to fall back on.”
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