Veteran right-hander Jakob Junis is on the move again, this time signing with the Texas Rangers. According to ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez, Junis agreed to a one-year, $4 million contract with Texas in free agency. The 33-year-old previously spent part of the 2024 season with the Milwaukee Brewers before being traded to the Cincinnati Reds at the deadline in a deal that brought Frankie Montas to Milwaukee. After pitching for Cleveland last season, the Rangers now become Junis’ fifth team over the past three years.
Move to the bullpen has revived Junis’ career
Junis’ transition from starter to reliever has significantly improved his effectiveness. While with Milwaukee in 2024, he posted a strong 2.42 ERA before the trade, finishing the season with a 2.69 ERA across 67 innings between the Brewers and Reds. In 2025 with the Guardians, he continued to deliver reliable results, recording a 2.97 ERA in 66.2 innings while maintaining a solid 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Since embracing a relief role beginning in 2023 with the Giants, Junis has gone 12–4 with a 3.24 ERA, a 131 ERA+, and a 1.14 WHIP over nearly 220 innings. His ability to consistently throw strikes and limit hard contact has become a defining strength.
Junis originally debuted with the Kansas City Royals in 2017 but struggled to find consistency as a starter. Over six seasons in that role, he compiled a 34–42 record with a 4.75 ERA, allowing 105 home runs and 673 hits in just over 627 innings. Home runs were a persistent issue early in his career, including back-to-back seasons with 30 or more surrendered. That weakness has largely disappeared since moving to the bullpen, as he gave up just five home runs last season, averaging 0.7 per nine innings.
By ERA+ (173), Junis’ brief run with the Brewers was the most effective stretch of his career. After signing a $7 million deal with Milwaukee, he leveraged his strong 2024 performance into a $4.5 million contract with Cleveland and has now secured another respectable payday with Texas.
Gonzalez noted that Junis’ command and ability to avoid loud contact make him a strong addition to the Rangers’ bullpen. Across his nine-year MLB career, Junis owns a 46–46 record, a 4.36 ERA, and 9.7 WAR, carving out a steady role as a dependable relief arm late in his career.
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