The Texas Rangers took one of the biggest hits any team suffered in the Biogenesis clinic scandal, when one of their top power bats, Nelson Cruz, accepted a 50-game penalty doled out by MLB.
The Rangers are in the thick of an American League West division chase, and losing a bat of Cruz's caliber could be devastating. That's why the Rangers have decided to claim Alex Rios of the Chicago White Sox on waivers.
The way waiver claims work is as follows: teams can place any player on waivers, and if that player is claimed the team can pull them back. Any player who makes it through that stage can be traded as if it were prior to the deadline. However now that Texas has claimed Rios, the White Sox can work exclusively with the Rangers on a Rios deal. Chicago may also decide to simply let Rios go for nothing, and clear his salary off the books.
The White Sox may choose option B, since Rios isn't making chump change. He is owed $12.5 million in 2014, and $13.5 million the following season, prohibitive numbers for a team entrenched in the AL Central cellar.
On the flip side, Rios has been a productive bat this season, hitting .277 with 12 home runs, 55 RBI, and 26 stolen bases. He doesn't provide the massive pop Cruz did, but he does offer solid power with much more potential on the bases. A lineup regularly featuring Leonys Martin, Ian Kinsler, Rios, Elvis Andrus and Jurickson Profar could mean terror for opposing pitcher-catcher batteries.
The White Sox could ultimately decide to keep Rios as well, but that probably isn't in the cards. With the 2013 campaign down the tubes, Chicago likely wants to open up a place for newly acquired outfield prospect Avisail Garcia, whom they acquired from the Detroit Tigers in a three-team deal that saw the Pale Hose deal Jake Peavy.
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