JOC PEDERSON NEWS

Sits against righty Pederson was held out of the starting lineup against a right-hander Sunday against the Dodgers.

Impact The hot-hitting Josh Smith filled in at designated hitters against a right-hander, which has been Pederson's role. Unfortunately for Pederson, a season-opening slump (3-for-55, .055) may cost him some starts in the short-term.

APRIL 21 • ROTOWIRE

Dropped to fifth Pederson batted fifth in the order and went 0-for-2 in Saturday's 4-3 win over the Dodgers.

Impact Pederson has consistently batted third, but his season-opening slump finally prompted manager Bruce Bochy to move him down the order. The slugging designated hitter is now 2-for-55 (.055) to start the season and could be in danger of more than a lower spot in the order. Bochy might be tempted to give the hot-hitting Josh Smith (.341), a super-utility player without a permanent home in the everyday lineup, more opportunities at DH ahead of Pederson.

APRIL 20 • ROTOWIRE

Rangers' Joc Pederson is hitting for an unfathomably low batting average | Sporting News Canada This is almost hard to believe.

APRIL 19 • SPORTINGNEWS.COM

Epic slump continues Pederson went 0-for-3 in Friday's 3-0 loss to the Dodgers.

Impact Season-opening slumps tend to get more attention than ones in the middle of a season, but there's no sugar-coating Pederson's futility. Following Friday's game, he's zero for his last 36 at-bats and is batting .057. If he qualified that would be last in the majors. To Pederson's credit, the slump hasn't resulted in him chasing -- his 24.8 chase percentage is below league average and less than his career norm (27.6). He is, however, topping a lot of balls and is experiencing a spike in groundball rate (56.4). Texas manager Bruce Bochy is standing behind the slugger and continues to put him third or fourth in the lineup.

APRIL 19 • ROTOWIRE

Edman hits leadoff HR filling in for Ohtani and Yamamoto strikes out 10 as Dodgers beat Texas 3-0

Yoshinobu Yamamoto matched his career high with 10 strikeouts over seven innings after Tommy Edman led off the game with a home run and the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Texas Range...

APRIL 19 • Associated Press

On bench versus southpaw Pederson is out of the lineup for Tuesday's game against the Angels.

Impact Pederson is hitless in his past 24 at-bats and has gone 3-for-49 through 14 games this season. Jonah Heim will serve as the designated hitter against Halos lefty Yusei Kikuchi while Kyle Higashioka starts behind the plate.

APRIL 15 • ROTOWIRE

Slump continues Pederson went 0-for-4 in Saturday's 9-2 loss to Seattle.

Impact Pederson's string of futility reached 22 consecutive at-bats without a hit, dropping his average to .077. He had opened the season batting third or fourth but was dropped to fifth for a second straight start. Texas manager Bruce Bochy was quick to point out the drop was not a concession to Pederson's struggles, instead a move to avoid having three consecutive left-handed hitters. The left-handed Josh Smith was inserted into the third spot with Wyatt Langford (oblique) on the injured list.

APRIL 13 • ROTOWIRE

Slump continues Pederson went 0-for-4 in Saturday's 9-2 loss to Seattle.

Impact Pederson's string of futility reached 22 consecutive at-bats without a hit, dropping his batting average to .077. He had opened the season batting third or fourth but was dropped to fifth Saturday for a second straight start. Texas manager Bruce Bochy was quick to point out the drop was not a concession to Pederson's struggles, but was instead a move to avoid having three consecutive left-handed hitters after Josh Smith was inserted into the third spot in the order with Wyatt Langford (oblique) on the injured list.

APRIL 13 • ROTOWIRE

Mired in slump Pederson went 0-for-3 with a walk in Friday's 5-3 loss to Seattle.

Impact Pederson extended a hitless streak to 18 at-bats and is batting .086 (.334 OPS) for his new team. After a career-best season in 2024 while with Arizona, he gambled on free agency and won, getting a two-year deal with the Rangers. Texas viewed him as the answer at designated hitter, a position from which it got a league-low .584 OPS in 2024, but it has not yet worked out. Pederson has just one barrel (3.8 barrel percentage) and a career-worst 30.8 hard-hit percentage.

APRIL 12 • ROTOWIRE

MLB roundtable: Will torpedo bats be banned? Can the Braves bounce back?

The FOX Sports MLB staff weighs in on the hottest early-season topics, including which division leaders are here to stay, whether torpedo ba...

APRIL 10 • FOX SPORTS

Idle against southpaw Pederson is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Cubs.

Impact Pederson will take a seat for the second time in the series while the Cubs send another lefty (Shota Imanaga) to the mound. With Pederson on the bench, Jonah Heim will get a day off from catching duties and will serve as the Rangers' designated hitter.

APRIL 9 • ROTOWIRE

2025 MLB free-agent signing tracker, trades: Astros send Rafael Montero to ATL

MLB free agency is here! Here are the latest notable signings, trades and the top remaining free agents across the league.

APRIL 9 • FOX SPORTS

Sitting against left-hander Pederson is absent from the lineup for Monday's game versus the Cubs.

Impact The Rangers are facing a left-hander in Justin Steele for just the second time this season, which means Pederson will begin the contest on the bench. Jonah Heim is starting at designated hitter and Kyle Higashioka is doing the catching for the series opener.

APRIL 7 • ROTOWIRE

Torpedo bat sighting in Arlington: Joc Pederson becomes first Ranger to deploy new bat Using a torpedo bat, Pederson hit a routine grounder to second base to start the second inning.

APRIL 5 • DALLASNEWS.COM

Jack Leiter shuts down Reds in Rangers' second straight 1-0 win

Jack Leiter shut the Cincinnati Reds down for the second game in a row and the Texas Rangers won 1-0 to take the three-game series

APRIL 2 • Associated Press

Slow start Pederson went 1-for-2 with a walk and was hit by a pitch in Tuesday's 1-0 win over Cincinnati.

Impact Pederson had a first-inning double but was stranded at second base. The lefty-batter is off to a slow start for his new team with Tuesday's double just his second hit in 15 at-bats.

APRIL 2 • ROTOWIRE

In lineup against righty Pederson started at designated hitter Friday and went 1-for-3 with a run scored in Friday's 4-1 win over Boston.

Impact Pederson, who was held out of Thursday's season opener against a lefty, was in the lineup against a right-hander. Texas manager Bruce Bochy may be strict in using Pederson against right-handers only. For Pederson's one opportunity to face a lefty -- Brennan Bernardino in the eighth inning -- the manger had Kevin Pillar pinch hit for him.

MARCH 29 • ROTOWIRE

On bench for opener Pederson is out of the lineup for Thursday's game against the Red Sox.

Impact Pederson is expected to serve as the Rangers' primary designated hitter against right-handed pitching this season, but he'll take a seat Thursday while the Red Sox send southpaw Garrett Crochet to the bump. Corey Seager is managing a calf injury and will get a day off from shortstop and step in as Texas' DH.

MARCH 27 • ROTOWIRE

AL West Preview: The Astros will look different, and that could mean a new division champ this year

The Houston Astros will look different when trying to continue their impressive run of AL West titles

MARCH 17 • Associated Press

Goes deep again Pederson started at first base and went 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBI in Wednesday's spring game against Cincinnati.

Impact Pederson walloped a three-run homer in the first inning. It was his third of the Cactus League and second driven to the opposite field. Pederson is expected to see time at DH mostly in 2025 but will get opportunities to fill in for Jake Burger at first base.

MARCH 13 • ROTOWIRE

Kumar Rocker, Rangers rotation hopeful, shows progress in unofficial third start of spring The 25-year-old threw 39 pitches (23 for strikes) Saturday to a group of that included Joc Pederson, Josh Smith and Jonah Heim.

MARCH 8 • DALLASNEWS.COM

Joc's got jokes ... and the Rangers love them SURPRISE, Ariz. -- Joc Pederson seems to have fit seamlessly into his first Rangers clubhouse, with a warm manner that complements his 11 ye...

FEBRUARY 28 • MLB.COM

Goes deep Monday Pederson started at first base and went 1-for-2 with a walk, a three-run home run and an additional run scored in Monday's spring game against the White Sox.

Impact Most of Pederson's activity came during the Rangers' nine-run first inning. Batting second in the lineup, he walked and scored Texas' second run then finished the scoring with his home run. The Rangers made it a goal to add power to the lineup in the offseason and added Pederson (23 homers in 2024) and Jake Burger (29 homers). Pederson should mostly serve as the DH against right-handers but could also spell Burger at first base.

FEBRUARY 25 • ROTOWIRE

Back in camp after illness Pederson (illness) has returned to Rangers camp, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Impact Pederson was away from the club for a few days while battling the flu, but he's now recovered and ready to resume workouts. The 32-year-old's first Cactus League game might be delayed a bit since he's a tad behind, but he will have plenty of time to ramp up for Opening Day.

FEBRUARY 19 • ROTOWIRE

Under the weather Pederson will be away from Rangers camp for a few days while battling the flu, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News reports.

Impact While not the way Pederson wanted to start off his Rangers tenure, it's not a big deal in the long run for the 32-year-old to get a bit of a late start. Pederson is slated to serve as Texas' designated hitter against right-handed pitching this season.

FEBRUARY 17 • ROTOWIRE