Brasier, 38, joins the Rangers after spending the 2025 season with the Chicago Cubs. His stint in Chicago never really got going, as a left groin strain landed him on the injured list twice and limited him to 28 appearances and 26 innings. When available, Brasier posted a 4.50 ERA, struck out 20 batters, and issued five walks. Advanced metrics tell a rosier story, including a 3.17 Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP), a 3.74 SIERA, a 30.5% chase rate, and a low 6.3% barrel rate. Opponents managed a .321 batting average on balls in play, noticeably above both the league average and Brasier’s career norm.
Over nine Major League seasons, Brasier has made 325 appearances with a 3.90 career ERA. He has pitched for the Los Angeles Angels, Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Cubs, and now returns to Texas, where he was born and raised. A Wichita Falls native, Brasier attended Weatherford College, located around 40 miles from Arlington and Globe Life Field, making this signing a homecoming late in his career.
Brasier brings a championship pedigree to the Rangers camp. A clutch performer in the Red Sox’s 2018 World Series title, he gave up just one earned run in 8⅔ playoff innings after a 1.60 ERA across 33⅔ regular-season innings. He won his second championship ring with the Dodgers in 2024, going 1.89 ERA over 66⅔ combined innings in 2023–24. Brasier appeared as an opener twice in the 2024 playoffs, throwing a shutout in an elimination game and allowing five earned runs in nine total innings.
Injuries have impacted Brasier in recent seasons. He threw only 28 innings for Los Angeles in 2024 due to a right calf strain, but still recorded a 3.54 ERA with a 22.7% strikeout rate and a 4.5% walk rate. Over his past three seasons combined, excluding a difficult 2022 campaign, Brasier produced a 3.48 ERA, 22.3% strikeout rate, 6.4% walk rate, two saves, and 20 holds across 113 2/3 innings, while limiting home runs to 0.63 per nine innings.
The Rangers went after Brasier, who has 10 career saves, amid a wide-ranging bullpen rebuild. Texas lost Hoby Milner, Phil Maton, Shawn Armstrong, Jacob Webb, and Danny Coulombe to free agency. The club signed veterans Chris Martin, Alexis Diaz, Tyler Alexander, and Jakob Junis to Major League deals, added Josh Sborz and Brasier on minor-league contracts, and acquired Carter Baumler in the Rule 5 Draft. The Rangers had a 3.62 bullpen ERA this past season but converted just 37 of 66 save opportunities, revealing the need for more consistent late-inning pitching
