Rangers sign Urbina
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Ugueth Urbina was 1-6 with a 3.00 era and 40 saves in 61 appearances in 2002. (AP)
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The Texas Rangers announced today that the club has agreed to terms with free agent righthanded pitcher Ugueth Urbina on a one-year contract for the 2003 season. No further terms were disclosed.
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"The Rangers are extremely pleased to add one of the top closers in baseball to our club," commented General Manager John Hart. "Ugueth Urbina has a quality arm and had been very successful in late inning situations throughout his career. A young veteran at the age of 28, we also feel that he will be a positive influence on the development of Francisco Cordero and our other young relievers. This is a major piece in the improvement of the ballclub for 2003."
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"Our bullpen was a major weakness last season, and the signing of Ugueth Urbina addresses that need," stated Rangers Owner Tom Hicks. "He is an outstanding pitcher who also demonstrated a real desire to be a Texas Ranger. Our baseball staff deserves a lot of credit for getting this done."
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Urbina, 28, was one of the top closers in the Major Leagues with the Boston Red Sox in 2002. The righthander was 1-6 with a 3.00 era and 40 saves in 61 appearances. He tied for third in the American League in saves while converting 40 of 46 opportunities (87 percent) and held opposing batters to a .202 (44-218) average, sixth lowest in the league. Urbina averaged 10.65 strikeouts every nine innings, fourth best among league relievers and also ranked among the A.L. leaders in games finished (T5th, 55) and relief strikeouts (8th, 71).
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He converted 19 consecutive save opportunities from April 12-July 3 and converted 22 of 23 tries in the season's first half, earning him his second All-Star appearance. Urbina also was outstanding for the Red Sox down the stretch, earning ten saves in September while limiting the opposition to a .114 (5-44) average in that month. The fourth Boston pitcher to ever save 40 games in a season, he held righthanded batters to a .143 (15-105) average.
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Urbina is 32-33, 3.40 with 174 saves in 205 opportunities over 376 career appearances with Montreal (1995-2001) and Boston (2001-02). The righthander has earned 20 or more saves five times, leading the National League with a career high 41 in 1999 and has fanned 583 batters in 486.2 innings in his big league career. He won a career high ten games with the Expos in 1996 before becoming Montreal's fulltime closer the following season. Urbina was the N.L. Fireman of the Year in 1999, then pitching in only 13 games in 2000 due to right elbow surgery. He was traded to Boston on July 31, 2001 and earned nine saves in ten tries with the Red Sox over the rest of the year. Urbina was not offered salary arbitration by the Red Sox on December 7, 2002.
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"The Rangers have a great lineup. I'm looking forward to playing with guys like Alex Rodriguez, Rafael Palmeiro, and Juan Gonzalez," said Urbina from his home in Ocumare Del Tuy, Venezuela. "I expect to get a lot of saves, and I think I'll be a big help not only to the bullpen but also to the whole pitching staff. My goal is to help the Rangers turns things around in 2003."
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With today's signing, Texas has 36 players on its Major League roster.
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