Rangers Purchase Contract of Express RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx

ROUND ROCK, Texas - The Texas Rangers announced on Thursday afternoon that the club has purchased the contract of Round Rock Express RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx . The righty is scheduled to start tonight against the Kansas City Royals at Globe Life Park.

The 32-year-old veteran opened the season with Round Rock, going 2-3 with a 3.72 ERA (16 ER/38.2 IP) in eight starts for the E-Train. He racked up 32 strikeouts while walking just eight hitters.

Bibens-Dirkx made his long-awaited major league debut on May 17, 2017 after spending 12 seasons in the minor leagues. The righty opened the 2017 campaign with the Express, going 0-2 with a 3.04 ERA (8 RE/23.2 IP) before receiving his first career call-up to the bigs on May 10, spending the rest of the season with the Rangers.

The Oregon native posted a 5-2 record with a 4.67 ERA (36 ER/69.1 IP) in 24 appearances, including six starts, with the Rangers a year ago. He was named the Texas Rangers Rookie of the Year by the Dallas/Fort Worth Chapter of the BBWAA.

The righty re-signed with the Rangers to a minor league contract in December and joined Round Rock for the third consecutive season. Bibens-Dirkx was originally drafted in the 16th round of the 2006 June Draft by the Seattle Mariners. He also spent time within the Chicago Cubs, Washington Nationals, Colorado Rockies and Toronto Blue Jays organizations en route to making his major league debut last season.

The Express conclude their four-game homestand against the Iowa Cubs on Thursday night. Round Rock RHP Deolis Guerra (2-1, 5.82) is scheduled to start against Iowa RHP Adbert Alzolay (2-3, 4.70). First pitch at Dell Diamond is set for 7:05 p.m.

Single-game tickets, season memberships and flex plan ticket packages are on sale now. For more information on the Express, visit RoundRockExpress.com or call (512) 255-2255. Keep up with the Express on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter!