Former All-Star 1B elects free agency

First baseman Jared Walsh has cleared outright waivers and elected free agency, according to the transaction tracker at MLB.com. The Rangers had designated the former All-Star for assignment over the weekend.

Walsh broke camp with Texas while Nathaniel Lowe was sidelined by an oblique injury. He collected hits in seven of his first eight games before falling into a slump. In 60 total plate appearances, Walsh hit .226/.317/.321 with one home run and a pair of doubles. He struck out 21 times, a huge 35 percent clip. Once Lowe made his return, Texas squeezed Walsh off the roster.

It has been three years since Walsh was an impact hitter for the Angels. He followed up a huge showing in the shortened season with a 29-homer campaign in 2021. He slumped to a .215/.269/.374 line the following year, striking out at a 30.4 percent clip in the process. Towards the end of the 2022 season, Walsh underwent surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome.

While he was able to get back on the field, the left-handed hitter hasn’t rediscovered his previous form. He punched out nearly 39 percent of the time in 116 MLB plate appearances last season, leading the Angels to cut him loose. Since the start of 2022, he’s a .200/.263/.352 hitter in 169 games. He’s hit 20 homers in that time but has a 32.4% strikeout rate.

Walsh can look for other opportunities now that he’s back on the open market. The Red Sox are a speculative fit after losing Triston Casas to a broken rib, though they’re reportedly considering bringing C.J. Cron back to the organization. The Rockies are without a clear timeline for Kris Bryant to return from a back issue, while the Astros have gotten very little production out of their first base combination of José Abreu and Jon Singleton.