Rangers add two to the roster

The Rangers have added pitchers Michael Kirkman and Zac Phillips to the 40-man roster, protecting them from being taken in the Rule 5 draft.

Kirkman, 23, combined to go 9-8 with a 3.48 ERA (56 ER/144.2 IP) in 26 games/25 starts this season for High-A Bakersfield and Double-A Frisco.  He recorded 61 walks against 118 strikeouts, holding opposing batters to a .251 (136-542) average with 10 home runs.  Kirkman allowed more than 4 earned runs in just 2 of his 26 outings this season.  He began the year at Bakersfield, his first action at the High-A level, going 4-1 with a 2.06 ERA (11 ER/48.0 IP) in 8 games/7 starts.  He was promoted to Frisco in late May, going 5-7 with a 4.19 ERA in 18 games/starts for the RoughRiders.  The club's fifth round selection in the 2005 June draft, the Lake City, Fla. native is entering his sixth professional season in 2010.

Phillips, 23, was a combined 2-3 with 4 saves and a 1.39 ERA (12 ER/77.2 IP) in 36 games/3 starts for Bakersfield and Frisco.  He recorded 75 strikeouts against 30 walks, as opponents batted just .163 (46-283) for the year.  Phillips allowed just 2 home runs all season, an average of one in almost every 39.0 innings.  He threw more than 1.0 inning in 23 of his 33 relief appearances (69.7%) and held left-handed batters to a .137 (16-116) average for the year.  Phillips was selected in the 23rd round of the 2004 June draft, a draft-and-follow player who signed the following May.  He has pitched primarily as a starter in his pro career before appearing in relief in 2009. 

With the addition of Kirkman and Phillips, the Rangers now have 37 players on the club's 40-man roster.