The Rangers on Tuesday signed veteran right-hander Ian Kennedy to a Minor League deal that includes a Spring Training invite. Kennedy could earn a $2.15 million salary -- plus potentially more in performance incentives -- if he makes the Rangers¡¯ roster, a source told MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.

Kennedy, 36, will add more pitching depth for the Rangers. A 14-year MLB vet with a career 4.13 ERA, Kennedy spent the past five seasons with Kansas City, where he transitioned to a bullpen role after being a starter for most of his career.

Kennedy and Rangers general manager Chris Young were teammates in Kansas City from 2016-17. Young said their personal connection didn¡¯t influence his baseball judgement, and he expects Kennedy to come in and compete for a spot.

¡°Just knowing the player he was, the person he was, I¡¯m certainly very familiar with the person. You know who he is and [his] leadership qualities,¡± Young said. ¡°He's perfectly comfortable. I think that he'll be a great addition for our group here, and everybody will learn something from him."

Kennedy struggled with injuries in the shortened 2020 season, making just 15 appearances with a 9.00 ERA and a 1.79 WHIP. This came after he recorded 30 saves and struck out 73 hitters over 63 1/3 innings a year earlier with the Royals.

If he makes the Rangers' roster, Kennedy will join Jos¨¦ Leclerc, Jonathan Hern¨¢ndez and Joely Rodriguez at the back end of the bullpen. Young said Kennedy could be an intriguing option as a closer, but his versatility will be particularly valuable if the veteran makes the squad.

Manager Chris Woodward said the Rangers are looking at different possibilities for the rotation this season -- from a six-man rotation to a piggyback option -- and Kennedy has the ability to go multiple innings out of the bullpen in either situation.

¡°If you have a piggyback situation, you go five-man [rotation] and you have one piggyback,¡± Woodward said. ¡°Honestly the biggest challenge is the number of pitchers on your staff. If we want to go 13, we¡¯ve got to keep it pretty compact and guys have to throw multiple innings that are in the bullpen. We can't do it with a bunch of one-inning guys.

"There's a lot of pieces, there's a lot of obvious things to look at, but ... we have a lot of people on task. We're trying to collaborate and figure out the best way moving forward.¡±