Old "Pirate King" McCutchen enters Rangers' new season roster, begins his 18th season.

Andrew McCutchen signed with the Texas Rangers on March 6, leaving little time to prepare for spring training and equally urgent time to prove to the team that he deserved a spot on the opening day roster. The facts show that a few short weeks were enough for this veteran outfielder to demonstrate his ability. General Manager Chris Young said today before the team's exhibition game against the Kansas City Royals that McCutchen performed excellently in spring training, with a batting average of .421 and an OPS of 1.297 over 8 games and 19 at-bats, officially earning a place on the team's opening day roster. He beat Mark Canha for a backup spot.

“This was an extremely difficult decision involving many factors, but ultimately we believe McCutchen earned this position with his performance,” Young said. “His hitting approach, his batting strategy—we are very confident he can help us win many games.”

The 39-year-old McCutchen will begin his 18th Major League season on Friday when the Rangers play away against the Phillies. Although his playing time this spring training was the second shortest in his 20 Major League spring trainings, McCutchen said he felt almost ready immediately after joining the Rangers in Surprise, Arizona.

“I quickly found my rhythm,” McCutchen said. “The first time facing live batting practice on a secondary field… I walked, then hit a double to left-center field. I thought right then, ‘Yes, this is how I should be.’”

Just days before that, McCutchen was still looking for a team interested in him. This was an unfamiliar experience for someone who played at least 108 games in 15 of the past 17 seasons. Neither the Rangers nor McCutchen expect the 39-year-old veteran to get 551 plate appearances like he did last season with the Pirates, but they hope he can contribute both on and off the field, guiding young outfielders like Evan Carter and Wyatt Langford. McCutchen stated that he is willing to accept any role the Rangers assign him.

“I told them I’m ready whenever needed. Whatever role, whatever they need me to do, I’m here for that. That’s why I came,” McCutchen said.

Speaking about the kind of advice he can offer, McCutchen mentioned a scene from a Cactus League game on March 18: he was standing on second base, no outs, a runner on first, and Langford at bat with a count of 2-1.

“They brought in the closer, throwing 88 mph, couldn’t find the strike zone,” McCutchen said. “The count was 2-1, I stole to third… that would create runners on second and third, count 3-1, but Langford swung and fouled off a high fly ball. I said to him, ‘Hey, buddy, wouldn’t you rather be hitting with runners on second and third, count 3-1, instead of first and second, count 2-2?’ It’s those little details. We laughed about it, but it’s exactly the kind of thing that needs discussing.”

Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said leadership is a key part of McCutchen’s value. “We couldn’t be better off having a few more people like Andrew McCutchen in our team,” Schumaker said. “I think he can really help many young players play with a different mindset and competitive awareness.”

Today the Rangers also announced that utility player Ezequiel Duran and outfielder Sam Haggerty will be on the opening day roster. Young said Kumar Rocker will begin the season as the fifth starter, and Jacob Latz will start from the bullpen.