Joc Pederson won a World Series with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2020 and earned another championship ring the following season after changing teams twice.
The Texas Rangers missed the playoffs last season after winning the World Series in 2023, where shortstop Corey Seager, a teammate of Pederson’s on that 2020 Dodgers team, was named World Series MVP once again.
Pederson and the Rangers finalized a two-year, $37 million contract on Monday after Pederson passed a physical exam.
“It’s a great fit. A lot of our goals align,” Pederson said. “The Rangers obviously won a World Series in ’23, and they’re not satisfied. They want to continue to win. And I want to be in a place that wants to win. … It’s fun to get with Seager again.”
The deal includes an option for Pederson to leave after the 2025 season and a mutual option for the 2027 season. Pederson’s introduction took place at Globe Life Field, where the Dodgers won the 2020 World Series over Tampa Bay during the neutral-site playoffs.
Texas is Pederson’s fifth team since starting his career with the Dodgers. After leaving Los Angeles following the 2020 title, Pederson signed with the Chicago Cubs, then was traded to Atlanta during the 2021 season, where he won another World Series.
“We’re certainly excited about the type of player he is, what he’s going to add to our lineup and how he’s going to make our offense better,” said Chris Young, the Rangers’ president of baseball operations.
“Equally excited about who he is as a person. This is a player who’s won multiple World Series championships and has had a positive impact on every environment he’s been in.”
To make room for Pederson on the roster, right-handed reliever Grant Anderson was designated for assignment.
Pederson, who will turn 33 in April, played for the San Francisco Giants in 2022 and 2023 before joining the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023. In his only season with the Diamondbacks, he hit .275 with 23 home runs and 64 RBIs in 132 games. He has a career .241 batting average with 209 home runs and 549 RBIs in 1,272 games, with a career-high 36 home runs and 74 RBIs with the Dodgers in 2019.
During the 2020 postseason, Pederson played in Texas at the Rangers’ stadium for the National League Division Series, Championship Series, and World Series. He hit .394 (13 for 33) with three home runs and eight RBIs in 15 games.
Pederson grew up in the Bay Area, watching Texas manager Bruce Bochy lead San Francisco to World Series titles in 2010, 2012, and 2014. Although the Giants missed the playoffs in 2011 and 2013, they rebounded to win another title each time. The Rangers are hoping to follow that path after winning the World Series in 2023 but missing the playoffs the next year.
“All we’ve got to do is get to the playoffs,” Pederson said. “You let Bochy do what Bochy does in the playoffs, it usually goes well, and you add in a sprinkle of Seager in there, next thing you know, we’re all walking around with more rings.”
Since the Rangers last won the AL West title in 2016, the Houston Astros have claimed the division title every year except for the shortened 2020 season, where Oakland won the crown. The Astros have reached the ALCS seven years in a row, making it to the World Series four times and winning twice.
“For the Astros … they’ve put together a nice little run and it’s coming to an end, and it’s time for us to take over the West,” Pederson said. “There’s lots of things that are going in the right direction for the Rangers to be on top of this division.”
Pederson was only a designated hitter and pinch hitter for Arizona but could provide depth in the outfield for the Rangers. He has not played in the field since September 2023.
The Dodgers selected Pederson in the 11th round of the 2010 amateur draft from Palo Alto High School in California.
