Mike

Olt

Olt played in the Mexican League and independent ball this season and hadn’t appeared in the majors since 2015. The 31-year-old never lived up to expectations as a top prospect, putting up just a .580 OPS over 400 plate appearances across parts of three seasons in the big leagues.

Olt announced the news on his Instagram account. The Twins have yet to confirm, but it’s almost surely a minor league deal given that he hasn’t played in the majors since 2015. Now 30 years old, the former highly-regarded prospect batted .214/.346/.412 with 11 homers over 74 games (mostly in Triple-A) in the minors with the Red Sox last season.

Olt has played exclusively at third base during his time in the minors, but with Adrian Beltre blocking him at the hot corner, first base might be his quickest path to the majors. The 23-year-old batted .267/.387/.504 with 14 homers and an .891 OPS over 292 plate appearances with High-A Myrtle Beach last season and hit a league-high 13 homers during the Arizona Fall League. He was a supplemental first-round pick in the 2010 First-Year Player Draft.

Olt was primarily a third baseman in the minors, but he’ll have to be mixed in elsewhere due to the presence of Adrian Beltre. This could mean less playing time for the struggling Michael Young. It’s not clear how much Olt will play and he’s prone to the strikeout, but those in deeper mixed leagues should take a chance on his power potential.

He could also see some playing time at third base if Adrian Beltre needs a day off or gets a day at designated hitter, but that probably won’t happen very often. While Olt is a very intriguing prospect, strictly seeing at-bats against left-handed pitching will limit his fantasy value. Perhaps Washington will work him into the lineup against righties if he starts out hot, but he’s mostly worth a look in AL-only and deeper mixed formats for now.

Olt has only played three games in right field during his professional career, all of them with Double-A Frisco this season. The 23-year-old has only logged 18 plate appearances since being called up earlier this month and Rangers manager Ron Washington will have to find creative ways to get him into the lineup if he insists on playing Michael Young every day.

He’s just getting the day off. Mike Olt will make the start in right field and bat ninth.

Young is hitting just .269 with a .643 OPS in 112 games this season and hasn’t homered since May 7. Still, Washington has no plans on taking away his playing time. “I plan to give Michael Young a day off, but as far as discussing benching Michael Young and all of this stuff, that’s not what’s on my mind,” said Washington. “I feel like for the past 11 years he’s been a devoted baseball player to the Texas community and now that he’s struggling a little bit, we’re going to jump off the ship? I’m not.” Unfortunately Mike Olt is the innocent victim of Washington’s faith in Young. The top prospect has only logged 15 plate appearances since being called up from the minors earlier this month.

The struggling Young is just getting the night off. Despite much conversation on the topic, Rangers manager Ron Washington has no plans on taking away his playing time. Mitch Moreland will serve as the DH on Wednesday while Mike Olt plays first base.

It’s a shocking but intriguing move. Olt, 23, is generally regarded as one of the top offensive prospects in baseball, but he’s never played above the Double-A level. He was batting .287/.399/.575 with 27 home runs and 81 RBI through 94 games this season at Frisco. The Rangers won’t want him riding the pine, and he could have some value in deeper mixed fantasy leagues if the playing time in Arlington is plentiful.