Rangers land Marlins’ Jorge Cantu for two right-handers

Adding the right-handed bat they’ve wanted since the winter, the Rangers have acquired Jorge Cantu from the Marlins for right-handers Evan Reed and Omar Poveda. After a fast start, Cantu had fallen all of the way to .259/.308/.408 for the Marlins. He had driven in 54 runs, but 23 of those came way back in April. By month, he had posted OPSs of 920, 701, 680 and 536. He also doesn’t exactly fit the bill as a lefty masher. In his career, he has a 790 OPS versus southpaws, as opposed to a 765 OPS against righties. He was at 720 against left-handers this year. It makes one wonder if the Rangers wouldn’t have been better off with Mike Lowell instead. Fortunately, they didn’t give up a whole lot in return. Reed is a 24-year-old reliever in Double-A. He had a 1.62 ERA for Frisco, but he doesn’t project as more than a sixth- and seventh-inning guy. Poveda, 22, underwent Tommy John surgery back in February and won’t return until next year. His stock had fallen long before the procedure, and while there’s hope that the surgery will restore his lost promise, he’s just a lottery ticket right now. There’s the chance Cantu could find his stroke for the Rangers and overtake Chris Davis as the regular first baseman, but there were better options available if Texas wanted someone to start over Davis. As is, he’ll mostly play versus lefties for now.