Yates secures selection to All-MLB Second Team
Kennedi Landry
@kennlandryARLINGTON -- In 2023, the Rangers blew an astonishing amount of saves for a team that eventually won the World Series, completing the regular season 30-for-63 (47.6 percent) in save opportunities.
Entering ¡®24, the front office needed to find a reliable back-of-the-bullpen arm to hold things down.
Enter Kirby Yates, the 37-year-old right-hander who spent most of 2020-22 plagued with injuries before a bounceback season with the Braves in ¡®23, when he posted a 3.28 ERA with 80 strikeouts in 60 1/3 innings.
Yates signed a one-year, $4.5 million deal with the Rangers last offseason, looking to build off his 2023 campaign. He did all that and more. Yates posted a 1.17 ERA, while going 33-for-34 in save opportunities for Texas in ¡®24, earning his second career All-Star selection. He was also named to the All-MLB Second Team presented by MGM Rewards, which was revealed on Thursday.
All-MLB honors recognize the best players at each position across the Majors. The teams were selected by a combination of fan voting and a panel of media members, broadcasters, former players and other officials throughout the game.
Yates¡¯ 2024 season only rivaled his ¡®19 campaign with the Padres, the only other season he made an All-Star team. That year with San Diego, Yates logged a 1.19 ERA in 60 2/3 innings, while collecting 41 saves in 44 attempts.
Yates said many times throughout the season that this year was about proving to himself that he could still compete at a high level after the injury struggles of 2020-22. His ¡®23 season with the Braves was just the first step.
¡°The last five years have been weird,¡± Yates said at the All-Star Game. ¡°Look, if you would have asked me in April or May last year if I thought this was possible, I probably would have said no. But I did feel like this was attainable this offseason. There were some adjustments that I would have had to make and I made them. Thankfully, they've all paid off.¡±