Anderson and Cotton will be seeking first Major League action this season
Arlington, Texas — The Texas Rangers today have selected the contracts of right-handed pitchers Drew Anderson (#58) and Jharel Cotton (#45) from Triple-A Round Rock. The club has also activated right-handed pitcher Josh Sborz off the MLB Paternity Leave List.
All three pitchers will be in uniform for Friday night’s series opener against the Seattle Mariners, when the Rangers will have 25 active players for the game.
Anderson, 27, will be seeking his Rangers debut and first MLB appearance since August 8, 2020 vs. Cleveland while with the Chicago White Sox. He has spent the entirety of the 2021 season at Round Rock (AAA), going 4-5 with a 3.15 ERA (24 ER/68.2 IP) over 14 games/12 starts while averaging a career-best 11.1 strikeouts per 9 innings. Anderson has logged 16.2 scoreless innings spanning his last 3 starts for the Express. Over his last 2 starts, opponents have batted just .128/.163/.149/.312 (6-47) with one extra-base hit (double), 2 walks, and 11 strikeouts. Primarily a starter in his minor league career, Anderson has totaled 10 games/one start in the Majors over four seasons with Philadelphia (2017-19) and Chicago-AL (2020).
The 29-year-old Cotton will be seeking his Rangers debut, his first Major League relief appearance, and his first MLB outing overall since a start on September 24, 2017 vs. Texas while a member of the Oakland A’s. The right-hander has gone 11-10 with a 4.95 ERA over 29 games in his MLB career with Oakland from 2016-17, all as a starting pitcher. Cotton has spent the entire season with Round Rock, going 4-0 with a 3.00 ERA (14 ER/42.0 IP) over 24 games/2 starts with a 1.167 WHIP figure, 12.2 strikeouts per 9 innings, and a .205/.286/.301/.587 opponent slash line.
Sborz was placed on the Paternity Leave List on Tuesday following the birth of his first child on Monday. He has gone 3-3 with a 4.46 ERA (18 ER/36.1 IP) over 39 relief appearances for the Rangers this season, ranking among staff leaders in games (39) and relief strikeouts (46).
Following today’s trade and these transactions, the Rangers now have 39 players on the club’s Major League roster, along with seven players on the 60-day Injured List.
JOHN HICKS OUTRIGHTED: Catcher John Hicks, who was designated for assignment on July 23, has been assigned outright to Triple-A Round Rock. Hicks batted .258 with 4 home runs and 7 RBI over 10 games for Texas from June 29-July 22.
