Mike Napoli to Rangers: Latest Contract Details, Comments, Reaction

Veteran slugger Mike Napoli reached an agreement on Feb. 7 with the Texas Rangers on a one-year deal. 

TR Sullivan of MLB.com first reported the details of the signing. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News later confirmed the agreement.

On Wednesday, Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports broke down the financial details of the deal: 

Napoli signed a one-year contract with the Cleveland Indians last offseason and proceeded to crush a career-high 34 home runs. The 35-year-old first baseman added 101 runs batted in and 92 runs scored to go with an .800 OPS.

His success was one of the main reasons the Indians made a playoff run despite a series of key injuries, including the continued absence of outfielder Michael Brantley.

The former All-Star provided more than just important hits, though. In September, Cleveland manager Terry Francona discussed the overall impact he made, per Zack Meisel of Cleveland.com.

"What he brings to a team exceeds his numbers," Francona said. "There's a lot to be said for that. His numbers have been tremendous for us, but what he's done as a teammate, in my opinion, has probably exceeded his numbers."

Napoli is known for his ability to keep the mood light in the clubhouse, which is an underrated trait during the long grind of an MLB regular season. But he's also been through enough playoff runs to understand when it's time to get serious.

That's an invaluable resource for a team with playoff aspirations. Add in his status as a power threat and his stock remains steady, if not trending slightly upward, in his mid-30s.

The Rangers hope he can bring the same type of positive vibe back to Texas. Playoff baseball has followed him for the better part of the past decade, a trend his new club wants to continue as he returns after two prior stints with the organization.

He doesn't need to hit 34 homers again to make a significant impact, but he'll probably be counted on for 25 or more to keep the offense running smoothly. That shouldn't be a major hurdle as long as he stays healthy for a majority of 2017.

It's a nice pickup for the Rangers. Although the team already featured a strong lineup, the one thing it needed was more pop. Napoli, who will probably split time between first base and DH, should provide that as part of a middle of the order that also features Adrian Beltre and Rougned Odor.