RANGERS PURCHASE CONTRACT OF LHP CESAR RAMOS FROM TRIPLE-A ROUND ROCK;
OPTION RHP NICK MARTINEZ TO ROUND ROCK
RHP Keone Kela moved from 15- to 60-day disabled list; C Chris Gimenez to begin rehab assignment
Arlington, Texas — The Texas Rangers this afternoon announced that the club has purchased the contract of left-handed pitcher Cesar Ramos (pronounced SEE-zer RAH-mohs) from Triple-A Round Rock. Right-handed pitcher Nick Martinez has been optioned to Round Rock to make room on the active roster for Ramos, and right-handed pitcher Keone Kela has been moved from the 15- to the 60-day disabled list to create a spot on the 40-man roster.
Ramos (#55) is the scheduled starting pitcher for tonight’s series opener against the New York Yankees. The 31-year-old will be making just his 11th career major league start, his first since May 17, 2014 at Los Angeles-AL while with Tampa Bay. A non-roster invitee to Rangers camp this spring, Ramos has gone 0-1 with a 3.18 ERA (4 ER/11.1 IP) over 3 games/starts for the Express this season, holding opponents to a .195 (8-41) batting average.
Ramos went 1-0 with a 3.46 ERA (5 ER/13.0 IP) over 5 relief appearances for the Rangers in spring training. In his major league career, he has gone 7-12 with a 3.70 ERA in 251 games/10 starts for San Diego (2009-10), Tampa Bay (2011-14), and Los Angeles-AL (2015), setting a career high 65 appearances for the Angels last season.
Martinez made one appearance for Texas after being recalled from Round Rock on April 16, taking the loss on Saturday at Chicago-AL.
Kela was placed on the 15-day disabled list on April 21 (retroactive to April 20). He had arthroscopic surgery to remove a bone spur from the back of his right elbow on Friday morning and is expected to be sidelined for approximately 12 weeks.
Catcher Chris Gimenez has been assigned to Double-A Frisco for an injury rehabilitation assignment beginning tonight. Gimenez opened the season on the Rangers’ 15-day disabled list due to a lower left leg infection and played in extending spring training games in Surprise, Arizona over the weekend.
With today’s moves, the Rangers still have a full major league roster along with three players on the 60-day disabled list: Robinson Chirinos, Keone Kela, and Tanner Scheppers.
– RANGERS –
