Johnny Cueto Opts Out Of Minor League Deal With Ranger

Right-hander has exercised the opt-out in his minor league deal with the Rangers, per Jon Heyman of The New York Post . The veteran is now a free agent, per Ari Alexander of KPRC 2 . Cueto, 38, signed a minor league deal with the Rangers back in April. By the end of May, he had made four minor league starts, allowing five earned runs in 18 innings for a tidy ERA of 2.50. It seemed the Rangers had some interest in adding him to the roster down the line but couldnt find space right away, so the to kick his opt-outs down the road to June 14 and July 1. Since then, his results have dropped off. Hes made five starts since the start of June, with Nathaniel Thurmond Jersey two of them being seven-run clunkers. Overall, hes allowed 21 earned runs in 23 innings over those five most recent outings, giving him a 5.71 ERA in the minors this year. While Cueto has struggled, the rotation in Texas has gotten more crowded. was reinstated from the injured list at the end of May, with and following in the month of June, taking spots alongside and . Those reinstatements bumped and into long relief roles despite having some decent numbers on the year. With the combination of Cuetos numbers and the rotation picture in Arlington, its understandable that the club didnt want to add him to the roster, making this opt-out a logical next step for the righty. Hell head to the open market and look for a better path back to the big leagues elsewhere. Though the numbers in Triple-A havent been great, Cueto has a lengthy track record in the majors. He has a 3.50 ERA in over 2,000 innings dating back to his 2008 debut. The results have been shakier lately, as hes finished three of the past five MLB seasons with an ERA above 5.00. That includes last year, when injuries limited him to 52 1/3 innings with the Marlins with a 6.02 ERA. But as recently as 2022, he to sed 158 1/3 with the White Sox while keeping his ERA down to 3.35. Andre Iguodala Jersey