Anderson

Tejeda

Tejeda, a former top prospect in the Rangers’ system, signed a minor league deal with the Cardinals back in November and wasn’t able to crack their Opening Day roster. He’ll head to free agency and look for a new opportunity at the outset of the minor league regular season.

Tejeda didn’t record an at-bat until the ninth inning on Sunday, but had himself a nice moment in his one trip to the plate, taking a Max Scherzer offering out of the park for a solo homer to lead off the frame. Over the course of 94 plate appearances in the bigs these past two seasons, Tejeda has struggled to a forgettable .220/.245/.385 batting line.

Tejeda, 23, was sent outright to Triple-A by the Rangers near the beginning of November, and rather than report there, he elected free agency. He has a new home, and will get a chance to win a bench job with St. Louis. In 94 plate appearances over the last two seasons, Tejeda has hit .220/.245/.385, so there’s not much fantasy relevance here.

Tejeda was cast off the Rangers’ 40-man roster earlier this week and will search for a new organization after refusing an outright assignment to Triple-A Round Rock. The 23-year-old shortstop has hit .220/.245/.385 with three homers and five steals across 94 plate appearances at the big-league level over the past two seasons.

Tejeda is sent down -- along with pitcher Wes Benjamin -- to make room for Brock Holt and Willie Calhoun; both of whom were activated off the injured list on Saturday. Tejeda has some long-term appeal, but won’t be a worthwhile fantasy play in 2021.

Tejada will be taking the place of the injured Brock Holt on the Rangers active roster. The 23-year-old held his own in his first taste of big league action during the 2020 season, slashing .253/.273/.453 with three homers, eight RBI and four stolen bases in 77 plate appearances. He isn’t likely to see enough action to be relevant from a fantasy perspective.

Even with this impressive showing, the Rangers announced earlier that Tejeda will begin the year in Triple-A, which makes sense given Isiah Kiner-Falefa has a lock on the shortstop role. The 22-year-old made his major league debut last year, and is noted to be a top defender. His .453 slugging percentage from 2020 implies a huge power upside, but he will need to work on being more aggressive at the plate, and making contact against left-handed pitchers while he is in the minors.

Tejada took over as the Rangers’ starting shortstop for a brief period during the truncated 2020 campaign, but will head to the minors for some additional seasoning. He could be back up at some point later this summer.

Doesn’t sound very fun. Tejeda will sit with Isiah Kiner-Falefa moving to shortstop, and Sherten Apostel will play third. An update on when Tejeda can return should be available shortly.

It’s just 28 plate appearances, but the Rangers have to be thrilled to see the 22-year-old Tejeda hitting .259/.286/.593 with three steals already. After all, he was supposed to spend this season in Double-A. The Rangers are still financially committed to Elvis Andrus for two more years, so it’s no sure thing that Tejeda will open next year as their shortstop. It looks like the Rangers want to give him a shot, though.