Tim Heitman-Imagn Images

Former 30-home run hitter gets demoted to minor leagues

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Larry Brown | Last updated May 1, 2025 9:19 PM ET

The Texas Rangers have demoted one of their power hitters.

Texas is optioning Jake Burger to Triple-A so he can reset following a rough start to the season. They are calling up Blaine Crim to take his place on the roster.

Rangers demoting 1B Jake Burger and promoting 1B Blaine Crim from Triple A, sources tell @TheAthletic. Plan is for Burger to “reset” and return soon.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) May 1, 2025

Burger was acquired by the Rangers in a trade with the Marlins in December, and the AL West squad was hoping for big things from the 29-year-old. Burger was coming off a 29-home run season the year before. And in 2023, Burger slugged 34 home runs with an .828 OPS over 141 games.

So far in 2025, Burger has started off slowly. He has batted .186 with a .558 OPS in 29 games. That’s a small sample size from which to drop Burger down to the minors. But he does have a history of heating up in the second half, as evidenced by his career splits.

For his career, Burger has batted .228 with a .708 OPS in the first half, and .274 with an .871 OPS in the second half. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Burger back with the 16-16 Rangers before too long.

Crim was batting .313 with a .930 OPS in 28 games for Triple-A Round Rock this season.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: