Change Of Scenery For Jaye

ARLINGTON—Righthander Myles Jaye spent the past two seasons at Double-A Birmingham in a thin White Sox system.

He pitched well enough in 2015 to earn his first taste of Triple-A—he went 12-9, 3.29 and allowed opponents to hit .244—yet he needed a change in organizations to get that bump.

---

Jaye appears headed to Triple-A Round Rock to open 2016, assuming he doesn’t shock the world and make the Rangers’ starting rotation after being handed a non-roster invite to big league camp.

A return to Double-A, at Frisco, would likely be only temporary.

The Rangers needed Jaye after shipping three pitching prospects to Philadelphia last season in the July 31 trade for Cole Hamels. They also wanted him, trading for him on the final day of the Winter Meetings and immediately putting him into the ranks of their starting pitching depth if and when the Rangers need help this season.

“I think I’m in a little bit better spot here,” said Jaye, 24. “But nothing changes. You still have to go to the ballpark every day and work your tail off.”

The 6-foot-3, 170-pound Jaye is at his best when his sinker is sinking and he’s throwing his changeup as much as 20 times a game. He allowed just eight homers in 148 innings and had a 1.13 groundout-to-air out ratio, and he also lowered his WHIP at Double-A from 1.51 in 2014 to 1.23.

He focuses on putting hitters away in three pitches or less, keeping the ball around the plate and mixing in a curveball and a slider that he throws a little harder than in the past.

That combination should play well at Triple-A, which Jaye is expected to reach with his new organization, his third. He was originally drafted by the Blue Jays in 2010.

“It’s definitely a fresh start,” said Jaye, who participated in the Rangers’ annual winter mini-camp late month. “It’s a good position. It feels like family already. It feels like home.”

RANGERS ROUNDUP

• Rafic Saab was promoted to director of international scouting Jan. 27, replacing Gil Kim after he departed for the Toronto organization.

• Ownership partners Ray Davis and Neil Leibman joined the Rangers’ front office during their annual trip to the Dominican Republic with the goal of securing land for a new Latin American complex.