The Rangers have granted reliever Josh Sborz his release from a minor league contract, reports Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. The righty’s deal contained an unspecified June opt-out date. It’s not clear if Sborz formally opted out or if Texas preemptively released him after determining he wouldn’t make the MLB club.
Sborz pitched parts of four MLB seasons with Texas between 2021-24. While he had a mostly nondescript 4.86 earned run average across 150 regular season innings, he carved out a place in team history in October ’23. Sborz worked 12 frames of one-run ball over 10 appearances during the Rangers title run. He was one of Bruce Bochy’s top setup arms and fired 2 1/3 scoreless innings to earn the save in the World Series clinching Game 5 at Chase Field.
Shoulder problems have mostly hampered him since that triumphant moment. Sborz was limited to 16 2/3 innings in 2024. He missed all of last season working back from a debridement procedure, as he encountered a setback during a brief minor league rehab attempt. Texas opted not to tender him an arbitration contract but was able to retain him via minor league deal.
The 32-year-old has been healthy this year but hasn’t pitched well enough to earn a roster spot. Sborz allowed 13 runs across 14 1/3 innings at Triple-A Round Rock. He fanned 17 of 65 opponents (26.1%) but issued nine walks and gave up six home runs. He spent a month working on his mechanics outside of game action before being reassigned to Double-A a couple weeks ago. Texas bumped him back to Round Rock on May 27. He allowed hits to five of 10 batters faced in two innings before the release.
It’d be surprising if Sborz secures a major league deal given his recent form. He’ll presumably look for a new landing spot on a minor league contract in an effort to get on track. Sborz’s 93.4 mph average fastball speed in Triple-A this year is down a couple ticks from his peak.
