Schierholtz released by Rangers, with a new job in a blink of an eye

I know this is nothing about Dutch baseball or the New York Yankees, but I was surprised to see how a player that was released three days ago, can get a new job so quick….in Japan.

Some times, things can go very quick. This is what Nate Schierholz experienced after he was granted his release by the Texas Rangers.

In the off season, the Rangers signed Schierholz to a minor league contract so he could compete for a fourth or fifth outfield spot with the team. In thirteen games and thirty-four at bats he posted a batting average of .265, an on-base-percentage of .324, a slugging percentage of .265 and an OPS of .589. For a player with eight years of MLB experience, these Spring Training numbers are nothing to write home about. That is probably what the Rangers thought and so, three days ago, they told him that  he didn’t make the Opening Day roster. At that point he asked for his immediate release, which the Rangers granted.

And then all of a sudden, the Hiroshima Toyo Carp announced today that they signed the outfielder to a contract. So in 2015 he will become team mates with Hiroki Kuroda.

Schierholz in better MLB days (photo by Associated Press)

I found the news on Twitter. After a bit of research I found a short message on the website of the Carp, but no information about the length of the contract or salary was included. The message stated that Schierholtz will wear uniform number 57.