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Rangers GM to watch Hamilton work out this month

Tom Pennington / Getty Images Sport / Getty

The Texas Rangers haven't forgotten about their former MVP.

Texas plans to watch free-agent outfielder Josh Hamilton work out in the near future, general manager Jon Daniels told Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.

Daniels revealed the team will take a look at Hamilton before Christmas to see how his reconstructed left knee is holding up. At that point, they'll consider whether to sign him to a minor-league contract.

There may still be a fit for Hamilton in Texas, where he enjoyed his most productive years from 2008-12, a stretch that included winning the AL MVP in 2010. The Rangers are in need of an additional outfield option and at designated hitter and Hamilton could fit that bill as a powerful left-handed bat, assuming his health holds up and he's able to produce offensively.

The 35-year-old missed the entirety of last season due to knee problems, and underwent his third knee operation since 2015 in June. Texas released him in August in a procedural move.

Even if he signs a minor-league deal, Hamilton would still be paid over $28 million in 2017, the final season of the five-year, $125-million deal he inked with the Angels in 2013. All but $2 million of that will be paid by Los Angeles.

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