Outfielder Kevin Pillar is putting off retirement, signing a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers on Sunday.
The deal includes an invitation to spring training.
Also Sunday, general manager Kevin Young said pitcher Alejandro Rosario, the No. 50 overall prospect as ranked by MLB.com, has an elbow injury and likely will miss the 2025 season.
Pillar underwent offseason thumb surgery, and after it healed, he said he felt as if he could continue playing.
“I know I said I was gonna retire, but I’m entitled to take that back,” Pillar said, per MLB.com. “I’ve played this game for so long, I accomplished a lot of things in my career that I wanted to accomplish. I still had a bad taste in my mouth the way my individual season ended last year. … Sometimes you don’t always get to choose your destiny in this game, and I ended up in the right place.”
Pillar, 36, was selected in the 32nd round of the 2011 MLB Draft by the Blue Jays and was on the Toronto roster two years later but has bounced around since. He’s played for the Blue Jays (2013-19), San Francisco Giants (2019), Boston Red Sox (2020), Colorado Rockies (2020), New York Mets (2021), Los Angeles Dodgers (2022), Atlanta Braves (2023), Chicago White Sox (2024) and Los Angeles Angels (2024).
Last season, he hit .229 with eight home runs and 45 RBIs in 100 games. He became a free agent at the end of the season after appearing in just 10 games in September.
“He’s a really, really talented player that’s a good right-handed bat who plays all three outfield positions,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said, per MLB.com. “I had Kevin [in San Francisco in 2019]. I mean, he’s a great teammate, plays full throttle, which is what you love about him. He’ll be here competing for a job. I’ve been there [retiring and coming back]. This is what he loves to do. Sometimes when you back off, you miss it. It didn’t take him long to miss it, and he wanted to get back in.”
In 1,214 career games, Pillar has a .255 average with 114 home runs and 468 RBIs. He has 1,044 career hits and 468 RBIs.
Rosario, a right-hander, was selected by the Rangers in the fifth round of the 2023 MLB Draft out of Miami.
The 23-year-old has one year of experience in the minors, going 4-5 with a 2.24 ERA in 18 games (17 starts) at the High-A and Class-A levels. He walked just 13 batters and struck out 129 in 88 1/3 innings.
Young gave an ominous prognosis on Sunday.
“It’s likely UCL,” he said. “I don’t want to officially say, but yeah, it’s elbow and will probably require Tommy John” surgery.
