Yadiel

Rivera

Rivera signed a minor league contract with the Diamondbacks in early April and never wound up reaching the majors in Arizona, hitting .190/.235/.278 with two homers and two steals in 85 plate appearances for Triple-A Reno. The 30-year-old infielder has appeared in 192 games at the major-league level since 2015.

Rivera spent the entire 2021 campaign at Triple-A Sugar Land in the Astros’ minor-league system, hitting .232/.250/.261 with zero homers in 73 plate appearances. The 29-year-old infielder holds an uninspiring .175/.244/.217 triple-slash line with one homer in 319 plate appearances at the major-league level since 2015.

Rivera never ended up appearing in a big-league game for the Astros, hitting .232/.250/.261 with two steals across 73 plate appearances at Triple-A Sugar Land this season.

Rivera was a after spending four games with the Rangers in 2020 before undergoing surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right elbow. He’ll likely report to Triple-A for Houston and provide some organizational depth.

Rivera played in just four games for the Rangers in 2020. The procedure included inserting an internal brace in the elbow, a move that helps cut down the recovery time to 5-6 months. With that timetable he could be ready for the regular season in 2021, though any setbacks would put that timeline in jeopardy. Even if he is ready, the 28-year-old will have to earn any role he holds with the Rangers or anyone else next season.

Rivera was designated for assignment on Friday and passed through waivers unclaimed. The 28-year-old infielder holds a career .175/.244/.217 batting line in 319 plate appearances at the major league level.

The move clears a spot on the 40-man roster for John King. Rivera will probably clear waivers. The Rangers also added lefty Jake Latz to their 60-man player pool.

Yadiel Rivera will fill in at second base and bat ninth versus Athletics left-hander Sean Manaea. This sounds like a day-to-day situation for Odor, who’s sitting on a weak .150/.198/.288 slash line.

Rivera enjoyed a terrific spring training with the Rangers before the COVID-19 shutdown with a .500 average and four RBI in 22 at-bats. He gets the call to replace Elvis Andrus, and could see some playing time all over the infield. Having said that, he’s not a recommended fantasy pickup.

Rivera opened the scoring in the contest with an RBI single off of Drew Anderson in the second inning. He also tacked on an RBI single in the fourth to increase the Rangers’ lead to 4-0. He’s having a terrific spring, hitting .500 (11-for-22) with one homer and four RBI in his bid to earn a bench spot on the club’s Opening Day roster.