Tampa Bay Rays and Texas Rangers players: who played for both

Who played for both the Rays and Rangers?

72 players played for both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Texas Rangers between 1998 and 2025, including Hank Blalock, Nelson Cruz, Carlos Peña and Nathaniel Lowe. 34 of them played for the Rays first and 34 for the Rangers first; 4 played for both in the same season.

Did you know?

  • Dave Silvestri is the earliest on this list to complete the pair: Rangers first, then the Rays from 1998.
  • Travis Jankowski is the most recent: Rangers first, then the Rays from 2025.
  • Hank Blalock played the most games across the two: 26 for the Rays and 910 for the Rangers.
  • 9 of them had two or more separate spells with one of the teams, such as Carlos Peña.
  • Most common positions on this list: P (41), OF (10), 3B (6), C (5).

How many can you name?

Name players who played for both the Rays and the Rangers. The surname is enough. 0 / 72

All 72 players, most games for the two first

Seasons and regular-season games with each franchise (1876–2025). A gap of a season or more starts a new spell.
PlayerPosRaysRangers
Hank Blalock3B2010 (26 g)2002–2009 (910 g)
Nelson CruzDH2021 (55 g)2006–2013 (796 g)
Carlos Peña1B2007–2010, 2012 (726 g)2001, 2014 (40 g)
Nathaniel Lowe1B2019–2020 (71 g)2021–2024 (615 g)
Julio FrancoSS1999 (1 g)1989–1993 (632 g)
Logan Forsythe2B2014–2016 (390 g)2019 (101 g)
Gabe KaplerOF2009–2010 (158 g)2000–2002 (322 g)
Robinson ChirinosC2011 (20 g)2013–2018, 2020 (456 g)
Brad MillerSS2016–2018 (310 g)2022–2023 (108 g)
Jose CansecoOF1999–2000 (174 g)1992–1994 (193 g)
Jorge Cantu3B2004–2007 (332 g)2010 (30 g)
Joaquin BenoitP2010 (63 g)2001–2008 (274 g)
Bobby WittP1999 (32 g)1986–1992, 1995–1998 (281 g)
Dave MartinezOF1998–2000 (262 g)2000 (38 g)
Esteban YanP1998–2002 (266 g)2003 (15 g)
Pete FairbanksP2019–2025 (267 g)2019 (8 g)
Herbert Perry3B1999–2000 (73 g)2002–2004 (192 g)
Carlos GomezOF2018 (118 g)2016–2017 (138 g)
Asdrubal CabreraSS2015 (143 g)2019 (93 g)
Mike VenafroP2003 (24 g)1999–2001 (212 g)
Brian ShouseP2009 (45 g)2003–2006 (185 g)
Travis JankowskiOF2025 (14 g)2023–2024 (211 g)
Matt Duffy3B2016, 2018–2019 (199 g)2024 (4 g)
Shawn ArmstrongP2021–2024 (131 g)2025 (71 g)
Jake DiekmanP2023 (50 g)2015–2018 (150 g)
Matt MooreP2011–2016 (96 g)2018, 2022 (102 g)
Cesar RamosP2011–2014 (167 g)2016 (16 g)
Jamey WrightP2013 (66 g)2007–2008 (95 g)
Jeffrey SpringsP2021–2024 (86 g)2018–2019 (43 g)
Bobby WilsonC2015–2016 (53 g)2015–2016 (73 g)
Ryan Roberts3B2012–2013 (120 g)2008 (1 g)
Kirby YatesP2014–2015 (57 g)2024 (61 g)
Chris GimenezC2012–2013 (46 g)2014–2015 (70 g)
Josh WilsonSS2007 (90 g)2014 (24 g)
Tommy HunterP2017 (61 g)2008–2011 (53 g)
Matt GarzaP2008–2010 (95 g)2013 (13 g)
Jason ContiOF2002 (78 g)2004 (22 g)
Tanyon SturtzeP2000–2002 (91 g)1997 (9 g)
Justin RuggianoOF2007–2008, 2011 (98 g)2016 (1 g)
Joey ButlerDH2015 (88 g)2013 (8 g)
Kevin JepsenP2015–2016 (71 g)2018 (21 g)
J. P. ArencibiaC2015 (24 g)2014 (63 g)
Julio SantanaP1998–1999 (54 g)1997–1998 (33 g)
Nathan EovaldiP2018 (11 g)2023–2025 (76 g)
Rob BellP2003–2005 (51 g)2001–2002 (35 g)
Hoby MilnerP2018–2019 (8 g)2025 (73 g)
David RobertsonP2021 (12 g)2024 (68 g)
Gregg ZaunC2009 (34 g)1999 (43 g)
Wilson AlvarezP1998–1999, 2002 (76 g)1989 (1 g)
Austin PruittP2017–2019 (68 g)2024 (4 g)
Al LevineP2003 (36 g)1998 (30 g)
Phil MatonP2024 (40 g)2025 (23 g)
Drew SmylyP2014–2016 (49 g)2019 (13 g)
Ken HillP2001 (5 g)1996–1997 (54 g)
Hunter WoodP2017–2019 (51 g)2021 (5 g)
Rob RefsnyderOF2018 (40 g)2020 (15 g)
Brandon Snyder1B2018 (2 g)2012 (40 g)
Dan MiceliP2006 (33 g)2002 (9 g)
Jason RomanoOF2004 (4 g)2002 (29 g)
Corey KluberP2022 (31 g)2020 (1 g)
John RockerP2003 (2 g)2002 (30 g)
Ernesto FrieriP2015 (22 g)2017 (6 g)
Nick BierbrodtP2001, 2003 (24 g)2004 (4 g)
Ian GibautP2019 (1 g)2019–2020 (23 g)
Wilmer FontP2018–2019 (19 g)2012–2013 (5 g)
Jason StandridgeP2001–2004 (21 g)2005 (2 g)
Freddy GuzmanOF2013 (1 g)2006–2007 (17 g)
Mickey CallawayP1999, 2001 (8 g)2003–2004 (10 g)
Mike JuddP2001 (8 g)2001 (4 g)
Dave Silvestri3B1998 (8 g)1997 (2 g)
Jhan MarinezP2016 (3 g)2017 (4 g)
Chase AndersonP2023 (2 g)2024 (2 g)

From the SABR Lahman Baseball Database (CC BY-SA 3.0), 1876–2025. A season counts when the player played at least one regular-season game for the franchise.Rays seasons include the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1998–2007).Rangers seasons include the Washington Senators (1961–1971).

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Questions

How many players have played for both the Tampa Bay Rays and the Texas Rangers?

72 in the Lahman Baseball Database from 1998 to 2025, including Hank Blalock, Nelson Cruz, Carlos Peña and Nathaniel Lowe. A player counts when he played at least one regular-season game for each franchise.

Who was the first player on this list to play for both?

Dave Silvestri: Texas Rangers first, then the Tampa Bay Rays from 1998.

Who has played for both recently?

Nathaniel Lowe, Pete Fairbanks, Travis Jankowski, Matt Duffy, Shawn Armstrong and Jeffrey Springs and 7 more, with a season for one of the two in 2024 or 2025.

Does a player count if the team has moved or changed its name?

Yes. Seasons count for today's franchise, the way the Lahman database links every team-season to a franchise. Rays seasons include the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (1998–2007). Rangers seasons include the Washington Senators (1961–1971).

Careers from the SABR Lahman Baseball Database (CC BY-SA 3.0). Team logos are trademarks of their respective teams (logos via TheSportsDB). Independent and not affiliated with MLB or any team. Credits