{"id":67007,"date":"2025-07-08T09:30:24","date_gmt":"2025-07-08T09:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007"},"modified":"2025-07-08T09:30:24","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T09:30:24","slug":"billy-mckinney-elects-free-agency","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007","title":{"rendered":"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<header><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.mlbtraderumors.com\/files\/2025\/07\/USATSI_26576648_168416865_lowres-1024x683.jpg\" alt=\"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - MLB Trade Rumors\" \/><\/p>\n<\/header>\n<div>\n<p><strong>3:55pm<\/strong>: McKinney has elected free agency, per an announcement from the Rangers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>3:06pm<\/strong>: The Rangers have sent outfielder <strong>Billy McKinney<\/strong> outright to Triple-A Round Rock, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. That indicates he cleared waivers after being designated for assignment last week. He has the right to elect free agency but the log doesn\u2019t indicate whether or not he will do so.<\/p>\n<p>McKinney, 30, signed a minor league deal with the Rangers at the end of May after being released from a minor league deal with the Mets. Texas added him to the roster but his stint in the majors was predictably brief. He was added to give the club an extra outfielder while <strong>Evan Carter<\/strong> was on the bereavement list. Carter returned three days later and McKinney was bumped back off the roster. As he\u2019s out of options, McKinney had to be bumped off the 40-man, not just the active roster.<\/p>\n<p>In that short window, McKinney got into two games and stepped to the plate eight times, recording one single, one walk and one strikeout. He now has a career batting line of .208\/.283\/.384 in 951 plate appearances dating back to his 2018 debut, with that production translating to a wRC+ of 79.<\/p>\n<p>His minor league production this year was enticing but also nothing new for him. He slashed .295\/.433\/.487 for a 136 wRC+ in 24 games for the Express before being called up. Dating back to 2018, the year he first made it to the big leagues, he has a combined .259\/.364\/.471 line and 116 wRC+ on the farm. That had led to plenty of big league chances, with McKinney having spent time with the Yankees, Blue Jays, Brewers, Mets, Dodgers, Athletics, Yankees again, Pirates and then the Rangers.<\/p>\n<p>He hasn\u2019t been able to translate his big league chances into much success, which has led to him exhausting his option years, thus propelling him into journeyman status. If he elects free agency this week, he can see what other opportunities are out there for him. If he decides to report to Round Rock, he could hope for big league playing time later in the year. An injury could pop up at any time and <strong>Adolis Garc\u00eda<\/strong> is a plausible deadline trade candidate.<\/p>\n<p><em>Photo courtesy of Jerome Miron, Imagn Images<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p>View Comments (10)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>No one grabbed McKinney from the waiver wire. Click over to MLB Trade Rumors to read more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":67008,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[2467],"class_list":["post-67007","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb","tag-billy-mckinney"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"No one grabbed McKinney from the waiver wire. Click over to MLB Trade Rumors to read more.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NEWS USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-07-08T09:30:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"XuanTan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007\",\"name\":\"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - NEWS USA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-07-08T09:30:24+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-08T09:30:24+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg\",\"width\":1000,\"height\":1000},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/\",\"name\":\"NEWS USA\",\"description\":\"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06\",\"name\":\"XuanTan\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"XuanTan\"},\"url\":\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - NEWS USA","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - NEWS USA","og_description":"No one grabbed McKinney from the waiver wire. Click over to MLB Trade Rumors to read more.","og_url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007","og_site_name":"NEWS USA","article_published_time":"2025-07-08T09:30:24+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":1000,"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"XuanTan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"XuanTan","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007","name":"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency - NEWS USA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg","datePublished":"2025-07-08T09:30:24+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-08T09:30:24+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/Them-tieu-de-phu-2025-07-08T163016.992.jpg","width":1000,"height":1000},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=67007#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Billy McKinney Elects Free Agency"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/","name":"NEWS USA","description":"Your Daily Dose of Sports News and Updates","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/ac862d5ceb335ec8f1e374ed4bdb0c06","name":"XuanTan","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4f0d0d8858cf9c64fc1f3105c62cff269864cf9a26f88149688bdf4dc953df45?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"XuanTan"},"url":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?author=2"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=67007"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67007\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":67009,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/67007\/revisions\/67009"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/67008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=67007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=67007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=67007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}