Recent Brewers trade deadline acquisition inks minor league deal with Rangers

Around this time last year, the Milwaukee Brewers were scrambling to improve their outfield depth. Fourth outfielder Blake Perkins had just recently fractured his right shin after fouling a ball off his leg in batting practice, and Isaac Collins had yet to emerge as an option to fill his place. As a result, the Brewers brought back an old friend to bolster their outfield group. On February 24, just two days after it was announced that Perkins would miss 7-10 weeks, the Crew signed Mark Canha to a minor league contract with an invite to big-league Spring Training.

It wasn't, however, Canha's first stop in the Brewers' organization. The veteran corner outfielder/first baseman was a 2023 trade deadline acquisition of Milwaukee's, and played an important role in the club's first of three consecutive NL Central titles. In 50 games with the Brewers down the stretch of the 2023 season, Canha posted a 119 OPS+ with 33 RBI. He ended up being Milwaukee's clean-up hitter during their loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2023 NL Wild Card Series.

A season with the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants came between Canha's second-half stint in Milwaukee and his appearance at the Brewers' 2025 Spring Training. During that season, Canha's age-35 campaign, the long-time Oakland Athletic posted a solid 97 OPS+, leaving hope that he would be a productive piece of the Brewers' roster in 2025.

However, less than one month after signing him to a minor league deal, the Brewers traded Canha to the Kansas City Royals, opting for the versatility of Collins on their Opening Day roster over the experience of the 10-year MLB veteran. Now, just one year later, after a tough season in Kansas City, Canha is set to join his seventh MLB organization after agreeing to a minor league deal with the Texas Rangers.

Former Brewer Mark Canha agrees to minor league contract with Texas Rangers ahead of 2026 Spring Training

Canha has been one of the most consistent hitters in MLB over the last decade. A keen ability to get on base remains Canha's calling card as his power numbers have started to slip in recent years. His career 111 OPS+ tells a story of a player who has consistently been better than a league-average hitter who has largely avoided major injuries over the last eight years.

However, 2025 was the first significant blip on Canha's resume in quite some time. Battling through an abductor strain and an elbow injury, the 36-year-old Canha played just 46 games for the Royals and understandably struggled to find his groove. In those 46 games, Canha slashed .212/.272/.265 for a 52 OPS+ that was by far his worst since a few injury-riddled seasons at the beginning of his career.

In late August, the Royals designated Canha for assignment, and the veteran outfielder elected not to re-sign with a new organization prior to the end of the season. Therefore, a year after the Brewers handed him a minor league deal, Canha is once again having to prove himself in Spring Training without the security of a spot on a team's 40-man roster.

That said, if Canha can tap into the consistency that he displayed from 2018-24, his ability to man both a corner outfield position and first base could land him a spot on Texas' big-league roster at some point during the 2026 season. For a Milwaukee fanbase that saw the best of Canha's last three seasons, here's hoping the best for the one-time Brewer as he enters his 12th MLB season.