Padres add veteran reliever to elite bullpen depth
San Diego signs Leclerc to minors deal
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - OCTOBER 31: José Leclerc #25 of the Texas Rangers pitches in the ninth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks during Game Four of the World Series at Chase Field on October 31, 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images About a week ago, it was reported that the San Diego Padres were nearing a deal with a key player from the Texas Rangers’ 2023 World Series run. According to Mike Rodriguez , the Friars were targeting a deal with José Leclerc as a depth piece in their ‘pen.
That deal has now been made official, per MLB. com’s transactions page . A former closer for the Rangers, Leclerc dominated on the mound when he was healthy.
But he wasn’t always that way. Injury worries before a dominant resurgence When he was first named the closer by Texas in 2019, Leclerc struggled. He ended the year with a 4.
33 ERA across 70 innings for a Rangers squad that finished third in the AL West. Then, in early 2021, he underwent Tommy John surgery that kept him out for the season, leading many to question if he could ever return to the flashes of dominance he displayed in 2018 (1. 56 ERA, 57.