The Rangers announced Tuesday that outfielder Jake Marisnick and righty Brandon Workman have been released from their minor league contracts. It’s not clear whether either exercised an out clause in their contract, but it’s common this time of year for veterans of this nature to trigger such provisions in their non-roster contracts if they’ve been informed they won’t make the team. Regardless, both veterans will now be free to seek a new opportunity with another club.
Marisnick, 31, split the 2021 season between the Cubs and Padres, batting a combined .216/.286/.375 through 198 trips to the plate. The longtime Astros outfielder has never been known for his offensive prowess, however, and instead provides the bulk of his value with the glove and on the basepaths. Capable of playing all three outfield positions, Marisnick boasts a whopping 75 Defensive Runs Saved and an impressive 41 Outs Above Average in 4929 career innings in the outfield. He’s also swiped 77 bases in 105 tries (73.3%).
Workman, 33, has been with three different clubs over the past two seasons and struggled to recapture the peak form he displayed in Boston from 2017-19. During that three-year run with the Sox, Workman tallied 152 2/3 innings of 2.59 ERA ball with an impressive 28.9% strikeout rate that helped to offset a bloated 11.7% walk rate. Opponents struggled to do damage on contact against Workman during that time — evidenced by a 0.82 HR/9 mark.
Over the past two seasons, however, Workman has been clobbered for a 5.66 ERA in 47 2/3 frames, due in no small part to the fact that his HR/9 mark has nearly doubled to 1.51. Workman’s strikeout rate has also fallen to 20.3%, while his already problematic walk rate has further inflated to 14.3%. He appeared in a pair of official spring games with the Rangers and yielded two runs in two innings of work. Workman didn’t yield a homer or a walk and punched out three of the nine men he faced.