Dec. 03, 2024 15:52 PM EST

A No-No And Big Homer Among The Moments New Rangers Catcher Kyle Higashioka Already Had In Texas

By STEPHEN HAWKINS
AP Baseball Writer
FILE - San Diego Padres' Kyle Higashioka bats during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Aug. 29, 2024, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File) Jeff Roberson, ASSOCIATED PRESS
FILE - San Diego Padres' Kyle Higashioka bats during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals, Aug. 29, 2024, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File)
FILE - Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, right, collides with San Diego Padres catcher Kyle Higashioka as he scores on a single by Teoscar Hernández during the fourth inning in Game 1 of baseball's NL Division Series, on Oct. 5, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
FILE - New York Yankees Kyle Higashioka, right, celebrates his solo home run with teammate Aaron Judge during the eighth inning in the first baseball game of a doubleheader against the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas, Tuesday, Oct. 4, 2022. (AP Photo/LM Otero, File)
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Kyle Higashioka already had some memorable moments at the home of the Texas Rangers. He caught a no-hitter there and hit a home run on the same day that Aaron Judge set the American League season record with No. 62.

Now Globe Life Park will be Higashioka's home stadium after he signed a $13.5 million, two-year contract with the Rangers, who want to pair the 34-year-old catcher with All-Star and Gold Glove winner Jonah Heim.

“So many good memories have happened for me personally in this ballpark. It's like I would always look forward to coming here every year,” Higashioka said Tuesday, a day after his deal was Texas was announced. “It's funny that I'm actually going to be on the team. ... Hopefully ready to make some more (memories)."

After spending his first 16 professional seasons in the New York Yankees organization, including his first seven in the big leagues, Higashioka is coming off his only season with San Diego. He hit .220 with career highs of 17 homers and 45 RBIs while playing 84 games for Padres, who acquired him last December from the Yankees in the trade that sent Juan Soto to New York.

Higashioka was San Diego's primary catcher during the second half of the season, and through a playoff run that ended in the National League Division Series against the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

“I settled into a pretty good rhythm there and was able to get the bat going a little bit,” he said.

Texas will pay Higashioka $5.75 million in 2025 and $6.75 million in 2026. The deal includes a $7 mutual option for 2027 with a $1 million buyout, and Higashioka would get a $250,000 performance bonus in any season in which he plays 81 games.

“I think we see it as a situation where him and Jonah are going to complement one another, more of a timeshare to equal playing time,” Rangers general Ross Fenstermaker said. “I think a lot of that will be driven by performance, but I think that they both offer some unique traits and have their own abilities."

Higashioka was the Yankees catcher when Corey Kluber threw a no-hitter against the Rangers on May 19, 2021. He was also behind the plate when New York's Domingo Germán pitched a perfect game at Oakland on June 28, 2023.

Among only 13 men to catch both a perfect game and a no-hitter, Higashioka was with the Yankees during Judge's record-setting season in 2022. Judge broke Roger Maris' AL mark with No. 62 in the second game of a doubleheader on Oct. 4, the second-to-last day of the regular season. Higashioka had gone deep while playing the first game.

The switch-hitting Heim was an All-Star and Gold Glove winner when the Rangers won their first World Series title in 2023. Heim played 131 games in each of the past two seasons. He hit .258 with 18 homers and 95 RBIs during their championship season, and slipped to .220 with 13 homers and 59 RBIs this year.

“We have a lot of confidence that he’s going to bounce back and be an All-Star type catcher for us,” Fenstermaker said. “We’re looking forward to complementing him with somebody like Kyle, who I think will help elevate and create one of the better catching tandems in the game.”

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