The Texas Rangers have signed veteran outfielder Andrew McCutchen to a minor league contract, the team announced Friday.
McCutchen, 39, would make $1.5 million this season while playing in the major leagues if he is added to the 40-man roster, according to reports.
McCutchen has three weeks of spring training to show the Rangers he’s worth a spot. They are well-positioned in the outfield with rising standouts Wyatt Langford in left field and Evan Carter in center field and veteran newcomer Brandon Nimmo in right field.
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Still, Carter was limited by injuries to 63 games in 2025, so depth is a concern that McCutchen could help alleviate. His right-handed bat could also serve as a natural complement at the designated hitter spot, where left-handed hitter Joc Pederson is slated for the bulk of the playing time.
McCutchen played the past three seasons for the Pittsburgh Pirates, the club that drafted him in the first round in 2005 and promoted him in 2009 for his major league debut. McCutchen played his first nine years in MLB with the Pirates, making five straight All-Star teams and winning the 2013 National League MVP Award while becoming one of the most popular players in franchise history.
He bounced around with four other teams between 2018 and 2022, before reuniting with the Pirates. McCutchen played in 135 games last season, with 13 home runs, 57 RBIs and a .700 OPS. When the Pirates reported to spring training last month, general manager Ben Cherington publicly kept the door open to bringing back McCutchen, but the signing of veteran Marcell Ozuna effectively eliminated a spot on their roster for him.
“No matter what, Andrew’s a Pirate and certainly our desire will be to continue to have a really strong relationship with him into the future, whatever that looks like,” Cherington said then.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
