ARLINGTON, Texas — While the Texas Rangers have been among the top teams in the American League for most of the season, there is no doubt in anyone’s mind that there is still room for improvement, especially with Houston breathing down their neck in the AL West.
While the absence of Corey Seager and Adolis Garcia to injuries in recent days has left the lineup thin, general manager Chris Young will no doubt be aiming to improve the pitching staff by the Aug. 1, 5 p.m. CT deadline.
The Rangers’ front office is tasked with giving manager Bruce Bochy the tools with which to protect the leads that his powerhouse offense gives him. If a sturdier bat makes its way to Arlington by way of a better designated hitter or corner outfielder, then so be it, but the primary target has got to be, in one form or fashion, the increasingly porous pitching.
Bullpen boost
From day one, the Rangers have known that the bullpen was going to be their area of weakness. They had augmented their rotation with the signings of Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and Andrew Heaney, to go along with the return of Martin Perez and Jon Gray.
The lineup matured and developed in a big way to become one of MLB’s best run-scoring offenses. The additions there were the ascension of young players like Josh Jung, Ezequiel Duran, and Leody Taveras.
But the bullpen wasn’t just barely touched during the offseason, it was hardly even glanced at. Will Smith, the former closer for the San Francisco Giants (under Bruce Bochy) and Atlanta Braves, was a late Spring addition, and represented the most veteran of the arms in the bullpen.
It became clear quickly after the first month of the season that there would need to be better options for Bochy to go to in relief. The bullpen posted a respectable 3.43 ERA in April, which quickly escalated to 3.95 in May, and even quicker to 4.13 in June. Now, almost through July, the Rangers’ bullpen sits as the worst among all contending teams.
Young got ahead of the curve in late June by trading Cole Ragans and minor league outfielder Roni Cabrera to the Kansas City Royals to get the dynamic, if not controversial, Aroldis Chapman. Chapman, since joining the Rangers, had been lights out until a bad hiccup in Monday night’s loss to Houston. With Chapman not being a guarantee means Texas still has work to do on the bullpen.
Chapman can’t be it. So who else can Texas target ahead of the deadline?
David Bednar, PIT – If you’re a dynamic rental pitcher, that is, one whose contract expires at the end of the year, you might command a decent price. If you’re a dynamic pitcher under control for several years, your price tag starts high.
Bednar is in the latter group, and he is both dynamic and under control for another four years.
The 28-year old is a two-time All-Star with 19 saves, a 1.15 ERA and a WHIP below 1 at 0.949. It will cost some top tier farm names to get Pittsburgh to give him up, but bringing Bednar into the fold to go with Chapman and Smith would certainly increase the options at the end of the Texas bullpen.
Kendall Graveman, CHW – With both Chapman and Smith acting as co-closers at the moment, perhaps what the team doesn’t need is a third closer to muddy the waters. The Rangers could then look to an accomplished setup reliever. Graveman, the 32-year old righty for the Chicago White Sox might fit the bill.
Graveman got off to a bit of a rough start to the season, but since the start of May, has posted a 2.84 ERA with opponents hitting just .196 against him. Not a dedicated closer, Graveman has still recorded eight saves this year to go along with three holds, while striking out 29 in 32 games.
Josh Hader, SD – On the other hand, having a third closer wouldn’t be the worst thing, and if you’re unwilling to pony up the prospect load for a long-term controllable arm like Bednar, perhaps someone like Josh Hader is more what Texas can afford.
The San Diego Padres are probably the team that is underperforming the most. At ten games behind Los Angeles and six games out of a Wild Card spot, someone like Hader, who will be a free agent at the end of the year, is an attractive target to any of the contending teams who have bullpen issues.
Hader, an All-Star for the third time in 2023, is putting up a career year, posting a 0.97 ERA with 55 strikeouts in 37 innings. The biggest obstacle to landing the lefty is that the Padres might still believe that they can climb the standings to get into the playoffs.
Starting staff salvation
The Rangers’ rotation has held up quite admirably, especially in the first half of the year. Even after losing deGrom to Tommy John surgery after the first month of the year, hurlers like Dane Dunning, Eovaldi and Gray have stepped up in a huge way.
To date, the Texas rotation is second best in the American League by ERA, coming in at 3.75. But with significant signs of fatigue for Eovaldi, Dunning and Gray, an apparent short window of effectiveness for Heaney in each start, and an unpredictable roller coaster season from Perez, the Rangers could stand to inject some fresh blood.
And by adding to the rotation, the Rangers could shift someone like Dunning back to the bullpen and provide multi-inning stability to the middle innings.
Who makes the most sense for a rotation boost?
Marcus Stroman, CHC – Stroman has not had a great July, but the rest of his season has been, well, All-Star worthy. The 32-year old righty was elected to his third Midsummer Classic this season after posting a 2.47 ERA with 85 strikeouts in 102 innings over the first three months of the season.
Stroman will be a free agent after the season, having signed a two-year contract last season with a player option for next year to pitch on the North Side. But Chicago’s hopes for a playoff push are dwindling, as the Cubbies are 6.5 behind the Brewers in the NL Central and five games out of a Wild Card spot.
Stroman’s recent struggles might help push his price down, but the electric starter would slot in nicely with Eovaldi and Gray at the top of the Texas rotation.
Blake Snell, SD – The 30-year old lefty Snell is coming to the end of his tenure with the Padres. As previously mentioned, San Diego has been a disappointment and even if they believe that their talent can help them rise to a wild card spot, their division mates are showing no signs of slowing down.
As for Snell, he’s been outstanding, pitching to a 2.67 ERA in 20 starts, striking out 143 in 108 innings. The former Cy Young winner carries an 11.9 K/9, which is some firepower the Rangers could use going down the stretch.
Shohei Ohtani, LAA – The white whale of the trade market right now is the phenomenal two-way superstar for the Angels. Ohtani could fill two spots for the Rangers – the AL’s home run leader at DH where Texas carries the fourth-worst batting average in the big leagues at .213. But you also get the arm of Ohtani to go with his .302/.398/.674 slash line, with 36 homers and 77 RBI.
How has Ohtani fared on the mound this year? Over 19 starts, Ohtani has a 3.71 ERA, with a WHIP of 1.119 and 148 strikeouts in 111.2 innings. He’ll be a free agent at the end of the year, and the two-way dynamic of Ohtani automatically pushes the price higher for the 6.8 WAR pitcher/hitter.
Texas is also an in-division rival. The question here is: How much would you be willing to part with for ten more Ohtani starts, when the pitching is what you really need?
The Rangers have just under a week to make their moves to bolster the pitching staff. This is a front office that has already shown in the last two offseasons that they are willing to do what it takes to land their intended targets. Let’s see if that mentality holds true at the trade deadline with a playoff push at stake.
Which pitcher do you hope to see dealt to Texas before the deadline? Share your thoughts with Matt on Twitter @FisherWritesMLB.
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