Miami Marlins relief pitcher Johnny Cueto throws during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles, Sunday, July 16, 2023, in Baltimore. Two-time All-Star pitcher Johnny Cueto has signed a minor league contract with the Texas Rangers, on Tuesday, April 23, 2024.
AP Photo | Terrance Williams
ARLINGTON — Two-time All-Star pitcher Johnny Cueto agreed to a minor league contract on Tuesday with the Texas Rangers, the organization where he has a connection to the big league team’s manager and general manager.
The 38-year-old Cueto was 1-4 with a 6.02 ERA in 13 games (10 starts) for the Miami Marlins last season, when the right-hander was on the injured list for more than three months with a biceps injury. He was left off the team’s postseason roster.
Cueto’s latter All-Star season was in 2016 when he was 18-5 with a 2.79 ERA in 32 starts for the San Francisco Giants with manager Bruce Bochy, who is now in his second season in Texas. Cueto had five complete games and two shutouts that season, the first of four he spent with Bochy.
That was a year after Cueto was a trade deadline acquisition by Kansas City and part of the Royals’ World Series championship. That pitching staff also included Chris Young, now general manager of the Rangers.
The best season for Cueto was with Cincinnati in 2014 when he was 20-9 with a 2.25 ERA and 242 strikeouts over 243 2/3 innings. He made a career-high 34 starts and finished second in the NL Cy Young Award voting behind Clayton Kershaw of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Cueto is 144-111 with a 3.50 ERA in 368 games (363 starts) over 16 big league seasons with Cincinnati (2008-15), Kansas City (2015), the Giants (2016-21), the Chicago White Sox (2022) and the Marlins.
The Rangers said Cueto is expected to report to the club’s complex in Surprise, Arizona, before being assigned to one of their affiliate teams.
