Earlier this season the Rangers got a shot in the arm with Adolis Garcia. He came out of nowhere to carry the team on his back. That carried him all the way to the All-Star team.
Here’s hoping their latest out-of-nowhere rookie gives this miserable offense a badly needed kickstart as well.
Yohel Pozo arrived in Arlington yesterday. Oakland noticed. Pozo is a 24-year-old Venezuelan catcher and designated hitter with some contact skills at the plate. Skills badly needed by the Rangers.
He skipped Double-A to go straight to Round Rock this season, where he hit .337 with an impressive .958 OPS. He had already racked up 19 home runs and 63 RBIs when they called him up yesterday.
All he did was single on the first major league pitch. He flied out on his second pitch. Then he turned the game around with a three-run homer on his third pitch.
Here’s a guy who doesn’t waste time.
He does arrive with some controversy. He was one of a handful of Rangers prospects, along with Rougned Odor’s younger brother, stupidly named Roughed, involved in an alleged sexual assault on a minor league teammate. It was captured on video but Dominican authorities ultimately did not charge Pozo with a crime.
His legal problems are behind him. Now he is a Ranger. He made quite a splash in his first game.
Let’s hope he can carry this team for a while. They are desperately in need of that.
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