A’s and Rangers complete five-player deal
OAKLAND, Calif. – The Oakland A’s acquired shortstop Elvis Andrus, catcher Aramis Garcia and cash considerations from the Texas Rangers in exchange for designated hitter Khris Davis, catcher Jonah Heim and minor league right-handed pitcher Dane Acker, the club announced today.
Andrus hit .194 with three home runs and seven RBI in 29 games for Texas last year in a season shortened by two stints on the injured list with back problems. However, he is a .274 career hitter in 1,652 games over 12 seasons with the Rangers. The 32-year-old right-handed hitter made his Major League debut in 2009 at the age of 20 and is tied for third in the majors in stolen bases over that span (305). He also ranks fifth in hits (1743) and 10th in runs scored (893) and his 1,628 games at shortstop are the most by a Major League shortstop since his debut.
Andrus is a two-time All-Star (2010, 12) and had his best year in 2017 when he hit .297 with 20 home runs and 88 RBI in 158 games. He leaves Texas as the Rangers all-time leader in stolen bases and ranks second in games (1652), at bats (6366) and triples (48), third in hits and fifth in doubles (303). Andrus is signed through the 2022 season with a vesting option for 2023.
Garcia spent the entire 2020 season on the San Francisco Giants injured list after undergoing surgery on his right hip Feb. 6. He was claimed off waivers by Texas on Nov. 25. The 28-year-old right-handed hitter made his Major League debut with the Giants in 2018 and is a .229 hitter with six home runs and 14 RBI in 37 games over two seasons in the majors. Garcia was a second round draft pick of San Francisco in 2014 and is a .258 hitter with 63 home runs and 270 RBI in 460 games over six seasons in the minors where he has tossed out 147-of-444 (33.1%) attempted base stealers.
Davis hit .200 with two home runs and 10 RBI in 30 games with the A’s last year but had a .240 average, 158 home runs and 418 RBI in five seasons with Oakland from 2016-20. The home runs are fourth most in the majors over that span and eighth most in Oakland history. The 33-year-old right-handed hitter topped 40 home runs and 100 RBI in three consecutive seasons from 2016-18 but has 25 home runs and 83 RBI in two seasons since then. Davis is a .243 career hitter with 218 home runs and 580 RBI in 938 games in eight seasons with Milwaukee (2013-15) and the A’s. He has 32 career home runs against Texas, which are his most against any team, and had 19 home runs and 42 RBI in 36 career games at Globe Life Park.
Heim made his Major League debut with the A’s in 2020 and batted .211 with five RBI in 13 games. He was originally drafted by Baltimore in the fourth round in 2013, was traded to Tampa Bay at the 2016 trading deadline and dealt to Oakland in December of 2019. The 25-year-old switch-hitter has a .250 average with 36 home runs and 236 RBI in 517 career games in the minors.
Acker was the A’s fourth round selection in the 2020 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Oklahoma and did not pitch in 2020. He was 1-1 with a 3.51 ERA in four starts for the Sooners in 2020 after going 10-0 with a 2.36 ERA in 14 starts with San Jacinto College in 2019.