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Rangers Sign Declan Cronin To Minor League Deal

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The Rangers have signed right-hander Declan Cronin to a minor league deal with an invite to MLB Spring Training. Cronin was released by the Marlins in September. He’s set to miss the 2026 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Texas also added shortstop Richie Martin and right-handers Peyton Gray and Trey Supak on minor league pacts with spring invitations.

Cronin was a fixture in Miami’s bullpen in 2024, making 56 appearances. He had a middling 4.35 ERA with just over a strikeout per inning across 70 1/3 frames. Cronin hit the IL at the end of that season with a knee injury, then was sidelined to open the 2025 campaign with a hip issue. Cronin landed on the Triple-A injured list in August with an unspecified malady, likely related to the injury that led to the surgery.

The White Sox took Cronin in the 36th round of the 2019 draft. Operating almost strictly as a reliever, the righty reached Triple-A by 2022. Cronin debuted with Chicago in 2023, making nine appearances out of the bullpen. He gave up 11 earned runs in 11 innings with nearly as many walks as strikeouts. The White Sox designated Cronin for assignment at the end of the season, and he was scooped up by the Astros. He would spend less than a month with the organization, as Houston DFAed him in January, and he was grabbed by the Marlins.

The upcoming season will likely be a wash for Cronin, but he offered respectable results when healthy with Miami. Texas will take a flier on him with the hope of getting a usable bullpen option down the line.

Martin first came to the organization on a minor league deal in May. He’ll stick around after hitting .258 across 79 games at Triple-A Round Rock. Martin spent parts of 2019, 2021, and 2022 in the big leagues with Baltimore. He slashed .212/.261/.311 in 447 plate appearances as an Oriole.

The Athletics spent a first-round pick on Martin back in 2015. He delivered tepid offensive results over four minor league seasons with the club. Baltimore claimed him off waivers after the 2018 season. He made the big-league roster in 2019 and appeared in 120 games. A broken wrist cost him the entire 2020 season. Martin saw minimal MLB action in 2021 and 2022, totaling 50 appearances with the Orioles.

Texas initially added Gray on a minor league deal this past offseason. He made seven appearances with Double-A Frisco, then earned a promotion to Triple-A. Gray delivered a 3.84 ERA across 61 innings with Round Rock. The 30-year-old has strong strikeout numbers in his minor league career, but injuries have limited his volume.

Supak also joined the Texas minor league system ahead of the 2025 season and split his season between Frisco and Round Rock. The 29-year-old posted a solid 3.55 ERA in 12 starts with the Express to close his season. Supak was drafted by the Pirates in 2014. He’s spent time in the minors with the Brewers, Athletics, and Cubs.

Photo courtesy of Jesse Johnson, Imagn Images

Rangers Select Three Players To 40-Man Roster

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The Rangers announced that they have selected the contracts of right-handers David Davalillo and Leandro Lopez, as well as first baseman/outfielder Abimelec Ortiz. That protects those three from being selected in the Rule 5 draft next month. The club’s 40-man roster count climbs to 38.

Davalillo is the most highly-regarded prospect of the trio. FanGraphs had him at 11th in their midseason update. MLB.com had him at seventh by the end of the year. The Rangers signed Davalillo as an international free agent in 2022. He opened 2025 in High-A, but made the jump to Double-A by the end of the year. Davalillo tossed 56 innings with a 2.73 ERA after joining Frisco. His strikeout rate wasn’t as lofty as it has been at lower levels, but he kept the walks in check and limited hitters to a .195 batting average.

The 23-year-old Davalillo boasts a four-pitch mix, per FanGraphs. His fastball sits in the low to mid-90s, to go with two breaking balls and a splitter. Texas has a handful of other similarly-ranked pitching prospects around Davalillo’s age, so there will be some competition for a callup, but he could be in line to make his major-league debut as soon as 2026.

Lopez joined the organization as an international free agent in 2021. He’s posted lofty strikeout numbers in each season of his pro career, working as both a starter and a reliever. Walks have been an issue, though. Lopez opened this past season at High-A. He recorded a 2.19 ERA over 14 starts, with a solid 28.2% strikeout rate but also a 10% walk rate. Lopez continued to pitch well after being promoted to Double-A, delivering a sub-3.00 ERA with more than a strikeout per inning over nine appearances (eight starts). Lopez had a 10.6% walk rate with the RoughRiders, and he’s now posted a double-digit walk rate in every season since his pro debut in 2021. Lopez snuck onto MLB.com’s top 30 list, landing at 29.

Ortiz was also added via international free agency in 2021. He’s shown prodigious power at each minor league level. Ortiz launched 33 home runs between Single-A and High-A in 2023, then followed it up with 18 dingers at Double-A in 2024. Ortiz was back with Frisco to open this past season, but a 120 wRC+ helped him earn a promotion to Triple-A. He knocked nine home runs in 41 games with Round Rock, pushing his season-long total to 25. While Ortiz might have the pop to earn an MLB roster spot, FanGraphs cited his defensive limitations and excessive chase rate as red flags.

Rangers Shopping Jonah Heim, Adolis Garcia

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The Rangers are shopping catcher Jonah Heim and outfielder Adolis Garcia ahead of the non-tender deadline on November 21st, according to a report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Passan adds that both players are candidates to be non-tendered if Texas is unable to work out trades for them.

Both longtime stalwarts of the Texas lineup were featured on MLBTR’s list of the Top 40 Trade Candidates for the 2025-26 offseason. While Heim and Garcia were both key parts of the core that won the 2023 World Series for the Rangers, neither has played especially well since then. Heim was a four-win player and an All-Star in 2023 but since then has slashed just .217/.269/.334 (71 wRC+) in 255 games with sharply declining defensive metrics behind the plate. Garcia has fallen from similar heights, as he garnered MVP votes and won a Gold Glove in 2023 but has hit just .225/.278/.397 (89 wRC+) in 289 games the past two seasons.

Given each player’s past success, it’s not impossible to imagine either one bouncing back to be quality players in 2026. With that being said, the Rangers are facing payroll constraints this winter that will make it difficult for them to roll the dice on either player. That makes the decision to shop them on the trade market an easy one, as they can look to potentially recoup some value for one or both players before they’re forced to either pay the pair hefty arbitration salaries or non-tender them, cutting them from the organization for no return whatsoever.

Of the two, Heim appears to be far more tradable. He’s projected for a salary of just $6MM by MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz in 2026 as he heads into his age-31 campaign. That’s not a particularly onerous figure for even teams with real budgetary concerns, and between that light salary and the dearth of quality catching options around the league it would make sense if another club was interested in rolling the dice on Heim. Teams like the Rays, Padres, Astros, and Phillies all could be in the market for catching help this winter and could consider giving Heim a look.

Garcia, by contrast, seems harder to convince a team to take a chance on. He’s entering his age-33 season and is projected for a $12.1MM salary in 2026. While the market for right-handed outfielders is somewhat sparse this winter, players like Austin Hays, Miguel Andujar, and Rob Refsnyder all provided above-average offensive production from a corner outfield spot this past year and would likely be able to be had for much less than Garcia’s arbitration price tag. Teams might even see Garcia as more comparable to a roll of the dice on a player like Randal Grichuk, Lane Thomas, or Starling Marte, any of whom could be had in free agency much more affordably without having to trade anything away.

As for the Rangers, they’ll need to find another complement to Kyle Higashioka behind the plate if they wind up trading or non-tendering Heim. Garcia would be easier to replace internally given the presence of controllable outfielders like Alejandro Osuna and Michael Helman, though the team’s need for more offense could still lead them to peruse external additions to help Wyatt Langford, Josh Smith, and Evan Carter out on the grass as well.

Jacob deGrom, Ronald Acuna Jr. Named Comeback Players Of The Year

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The main event of Thursday’s award revelations came with the BBWAA’s announcement that Shohei Ohtani and Aaron Judge repeated as MVP winners. Major League Baseball also conducted its award ceremony tonight, revealing a handful of honors that are not decided by the writers.

Most notably, the league named Jacob deGrom and Ronald Acuña Jr. the respective Comeback Players of the Year. deGrom’s comeback from Tommy John surgery technically occurred at the end of the 2024 season. The two-time Cy Young winner made three late-season appearances last year. He took the ball 30 times this past season and worked to a 2.97 earned run average with 185 strikeouts across 172 2/3 innings. He earned his fifth All-Star nod and finished eighth in AL Cy Young balloting in his age-37 season.

Acuña bounced back from the second ACL tear of his career. The 2023 NL MVP had suffered the season-ending left knee injury on May 26, 2024. He made it back almost one year to the day later. The Braves activated Acuña from the injured list on May 23. He’d return to superstar form, hitting .290/.417/.518 with 21 homers in 95 games. Acuña went back on the injured list around the trade deadline with right Achilles tightness. He only missed a couple weeks and came back to hit .268/.402/.437 down the stretch despite an injury-riddled Atlanta team being well out of contention. It’s the second straight season in which a Brave was named NL Comeback Player of the Year. Chris Sale received that honor last season.

MLB announced a few other honors. Ohtani and Judge repeated as the respective Hank Aaron Award winners as the league’s best hitters. Ohtani yet again won the Edgar Martinez Award as MLB’s best designated hitter. Aroldis Chapman and Edwin Díaz won the respective Reliever of the Year honors. Díaz is free agency’s top reliever coming off a 1.63 ERA across 62 appearances. Chapman turned in a 1.17 ERA over 61 1/3 frames in what is arguably the best season of his fantastic career. He re-signed with the Red Sox on a $13MM deal in August. The BBWAA will reintroduce its own Reliever of the Year Award in 2026.

Brewers president of baseball operations Matt Arnold was named Executive of the Year for the second consecutive season. Milwaukee won an MLB-best 97 games and advanced to the NL Championship Series despite having an Opening Day payroll around $115MM. That was the eighth-lowest mark in the majors.

MLB also announced its 1st and 2nd teams. These are not league specific and are designed to honor the best players at each position. Those are as follows:

1st Team

2nd Team

Rangers Hire Travis Jankowski As First Base Coach

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The Rangers announced a few coaching staff hirings this afternoon. Most notably, they’ve named Travis Jankowski their first base coach. That suggests the 34-year-old is retiring after a playing career that spanned parts of 11 big league campaigns.

Jankowski carved out a solid career as a speed and defense depth outfielder. He played in more than 700 MLB contests and tallied nearly 1800 trips to the plate. The lefty batter hit .236/.318/.305 with 366 knocks and 104 stolen bases. Jankowski had very little power and only connected on 11 home runs, but he collected 54 doubles and 10 triples. He drove in 98 runs and scored 220 times.

A former supplemental first-round pick of the Padres, Jankowski spent the first five seasons of his career in San Diego. He’d go on to play for eight teams overall, including the 2023-24 campaigns in Arlington. Jankowski’s best season came in 2023. He had a personal-best .263 average while reaching base at a strong .357 clip for the World Series team. Jankowski picked up another three hits and a pair of RBI in nine postseason at-bats. His numbers tailed off the following season, and he apparently concluded his playing career with 25 games split between the White Sox, Rays and Mets this year.

Jankowski is a known commodity to the Texas front office. While his time as a player in Texas came under Bruce Bochy, he also has ties to new manager Skip Schumaker. The Rangers skipper was the first base coach in San Diego for Jankowski’s final two seasons as a Padre in 2018-19. Jankowski now takes on that role in Arlington, where he’ll presumably also be involved in outfield and basestealing instruction.

Texas also confirmed the previously reported hiring of Alex Cintrón as assistant hitting coach. They’ve added Rod Barajas as a quality control coach, a move that was first announced last week by Rocket City Trash Pandas broadcaster Chris Harris. Barajas coached for that affiliate, the Angels’ Double-A team, in 2025. He has previously spent time on the Padres and Marlins big league staffs with Schumaker.

The Rangers also hired Colby Suggs as bullpen coach. (Dan Hayes of The Athletic had reported last week that the 34-year-old Suggs was likely to take a job in Texas.) He’d held the same role with the Twins since the middle of the 2022 season.

Suggs takes over the bullpen coach role from Jordan Tiegs, who gets a promotion to pitching coach. The 38-year-old was a longtime minor league pitching instructor in the Texas system before getting his first MLB coaching opportunity this past season. The Rangers lost veteran pitching coach Mike Maddux to the Angels, and they’re staying internal with the much younger Tiegs to fill that position.

There are a more few role changes among the holdovers from Bochy’s final coaching staff. Justin Viele is now the lead hitting coach after splitting that job with Bret Boone this year. Texas had already announced that Corey Ragsdale would move from first base to third base coach. Brett Hayes moves from quality control coach to catching coach. Bench coach Luis Urueta and assistant pitching coach Dave Bush are back in the same roles. Texas will make one additional hire in a yet to be determined role to round out the staff.

Rangers Had Interest In Lars Nootbaar Prior To October Surgery

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The Rangers are looking for several new bats as they look to, as GM Ross Fenstermaker indicated at season’s end, improve their on-base percentage and contact skills. Newly installed manager Skip Schumaker has already spoken about finding a new offensive identity. One potential target who had popped up on the Rangers’ radar, per Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, was Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar. Goold writes that the Cardinals are open to hearing what other clubs will offer on Nootbaar and adds that the Rangers and at least one other AL club had shown interest in the 28-year-old outfielder. That, however, came prior to the public revelation that Nootbaar was undergoing surgery on both heels to address Haglund deformities.

At present, it’s not clear whether Nootbaar will be ready for Opening Day. Newly minted Cardinals president of baseball operations Chaim Bloom said two weeks ago that Opening Day is neither firmly off the table nor a guarantee for Nootbaar. His readiness (or lack thereof) is still up in the air and hinges on the speed of his recovery. It’s also not clear to what extent (if any) the procedure has cooled the Rangers’ interest.

Even if Texas is out on Nootbaar entirely, the team’s interest in him is telling in some regards. On paper, the Rangers seem to have a full outfield. Wyatt Langford, Evan Carter and Adolis García are currently projected to line up from left to right field. However, García is coming off two consecutive poor seasons at the plate and projected to earn more than $12MM in what’ll be his final trip through the arbitration process. Given his recent struggles, mounting price tag and the Rangers’ desire to improve their on-base and contact skills, García stands as a trade candidate or non-tender candidate. Interest in Nootbaar, whose best defensive grades have come in right field — the same position García occupies in Texas — at least supports the notion that García is on somewhat shaky ground.

Nootbaar’s projected $5.7MM salary in arbitration is less than half that of García. He also sports one of the lowest chase rate on balls out of the strike zone, per Statcast: 26th lowest among (21.5%) among the 215 big league hitters who took at least 400 plate appearances in 2025. García, conversely, has the 26th-highest chase rate at a whopping 35.1%. Nootbaar’s 20.4% strikeout rate isn’t all that far south of league average, but it’s several ticks lower than that of García. Additionally, Nootbaar’s contact rate is about four percentage points higher than average, while his swinging-strike rate is about 3.5 percentage points lower than average.

There’s little sense in reading too heavily into one individual target, but interest in Nootbaar supports the idea that the Rangers, who had the tenth-highest chase rate in MLB as a team and the eight-worst walk rate, are looking for a different type of approach at the plate. Nootbaar, like García, draws strong defensive marks for his corner outfield work. He lacks García’s raw power but still makes hard contact at plus levels.

The salary discrepancy between the two players is of some note, too. When announcing at season’s end that Bruce Bochy would not be returning as the Rangers’ manager, president of baseball operations said that when Bochy was hired in 2022, the team had “a little more certainty in terms of payroll” before adding, “We don’t have that at this point” (link via Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News).

That doesn’t necessarily indicate that Texas will gut payroll in extreme fashion this winter, but Nootbaar’s salary is far more palatable than a projected $12.1MM for García. Texas finished the 2025 season with a payroll north of $224MM and currently is projected for a $198MM payroll in 2026 (per RosterResource) before making a single offseason move.

Steve Hargan Passes Away

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Former big league right-hander and All-Star Steve Hargan passed away last week at age 83.  Hargan pitched with the Indians, Rangers, Blue Jays, and Braves from 1965-77, posting a 3.92 ERA over 1632 innings and 354 career games (215 of them starts).

The first eight of Hargan’s 12 MLB seasons were spent in Cleveland, where he worked as both a starter and a reliever in his first two years before gaining a firm rotation foothold in 1967.  That breakout campaign saw Hargan post a 2.62 ERA and a league-leading six shutouts over 223 innings, and Hargan was named to the AL All-Star team for the first and only time in his career.  Hargan also hit his only career home run on June 19, 1967, in a rare instance of a pitcher hitting a walkoff homer — the righty capped off a complete-game victory over the Kansas City Athletics with a two-run blast in the bottom of the ninth to give the Indians a 4-2 win.

Unfortunately, Hargan developed bone chips in his throwing elbow and underwent an ulnar nerve surgery in 1968.  As Hargan told SABR’s Gregory H. Wolf, “I was able to continue on with my career, but I wasn’t the same after that,” and Hargan felt he returned too quickly from his surgery.  Apart from some success in the second half of the 1970 season, Hargan’s numbers dropped off during the remainder of his time in Cleveland, resulting in both the loss of his rotation job and a 1973 season spent entirely in the minor leagues.

A trade to Texas helped Hargan gain a fresh start in his career, and he had a 3.81 ERA over 500 1/3 innings (starting 61 of 105 games) with the Rangers from 1974-76.  Taken by the Blue Jays in the expansion draft, Hargan pitched for Toronto during the team’s inaugural season but also bounced back to Texas and then to Atlanta in 1977, which ended up being Hargan’s last year of Major League action.  Carpal tunnel syndrome bothered Hargan late in his career, and after spending 1978 in the minors, he decided to retire.

We at MLB Trade Rumors send our condolences to Hargan’s family, friends, and loved ones.

Coaching Notes: Leiper, Weeks, Rangers, Twins

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With so many new managers taking over this season, it’s no surprise we’ve seen plenty of coaching staff turnover. Changes have been trickling in this week. Here are some quick highlights…

  • The Mets are expected to hire Tim Leiper as their third base coach, reports Joel Sherman of the New York Post. Leiper has spent nearly three decades as a coach at various levels. He most recently served as the Padres’ third base coach, a role he has held since 2024. Leiper would be taking over for Mike Sarbaugh, who was not brought back after the season.
  • Rickie Weeks is changing roles with the Brewers, reports Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. After serving as associate manager for the past two seasons, Weeks will move to the front office as a special assistant to the general manager. Weeks was drafted by the Brewers with the second overall pick in 2003. He spent 11 of his 14 big-league seasons with the team. Weeks returned to Milwaukee in 2022 as an assistant to player development. The Brewers will not be hiring a new associate manager, notes Hogg.
  • The Rangers are in the process of filling out new manager Skip Schumaker’s staff. The club is expected to add Alex Cintron as an assistant hitting coach, reports Michael Schwab. Cintron has been a hitting coach with the Astros since 2019. Texas has also expressed interest in Twins’ bullpen coach Colby Suggs, reports Dan Hayes of The Athletic. Suggs seems to be on the market, with Minnesota expected to hire LaTroy Hawkins for the bullpen coach position.
  • More from Minnesota, as new manager Derek Shelton continues to put his staff together. Hayes reported that Hank Conger will not be returning next season. Conger joined the Twins in 2022 as first base coach. After three seasons in the role, he served as assistant bench coach in 2025. Minnesota is also slated to lose bench coach Jayce Tingler, who is expected to join San Francisco’s staff in some capacity.

Joc Pederson Exercises Player Option

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Joc Pederson has officially exercised his $18.5MM player option for the 2026 season, according to a report from The Associated Press. The deal contains a matching mutual option for 2027. This was the only option decision for the Rangers this offseason.

It was also one of the easiest option calls of the winter. Pederson’s first season in Arlington was terrible. He signed as a near full-time designated hitter who was supposed to tee off on right-handed pitching. He instead hit .181/.285/.328 with nine home runs over 306 trips to the plate. He started the year slowly, fractured his right hand when he was hit by a pitch in May, and was only marginally better in the second half. Pederson had a strong August but otherwise struggled throughout the year.

He obviously wouldn’t have come close to an $18.5MM salary on the open market. That made it a no-brainer to stick around for what he hopes to be a rebound season. Pederson mashed at a .275/.393/.515 clip with the Diamondbacks two seasons ago. The Rangers probably don’t have much choice but to run it back with him as their primary DH. They’d be unable to offload more than a couple million dollars in a trade.

Texas is likely to reshape the offense via trades or non-tenders of the likes of Adolis García, Jonah Heim and Josh Jung. They’d have a tougher time finding a taker for the underwater Pederson and Marcus Semien deals. It’d be surprising if they trade Corey Seager, whose contract would be prohibitive for all but a handful of teams and who remains one of the team’s two or three best hitters.

Rangers Claim Willie MacIver, Michel Otañez

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The Rangers announced that they have claimed catcher Willie MacIver and right-hander Michel Otañez from the Athletics. Additionally, Texas has outrighted outfielders Dustin Harris and Billy McKinney. Both outfielders have elected free agency.

There wasn’t any previous indication that the A’s had put anyone on waivers or designated anyone for assignment. However, roster maintenance is common at this time of year. The 60-day injured list goes away five days after the World Series, which can often lead to roster crunches.

MacIver, 29, is a longtime depth catcher who just made his major league debut. He was initially drafted by the Rockies back in 2018 and finally got to the show with the A’s in 2025. He got into 33 games and slashed .186/.252/.324. His Triple-A work this year was much better, as he put up an eye-popping line of .362/.426/.541. That took place in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League and was aided by a .428 batting average on balls in play, but it was nonetheless enough to intrigue the Rangers.

Texas has Jonah Heim and Kyle Higashioka on the roster. MacIver is the clear #3 catcher on the roster for now. He still has options and can be kept in Triple-A as depth, though his path to big league playing time could open up if the Rangers decide to shake things up with a trade. For the A’s, they still have Shea Langeliers as their primary backstop. Austin Wynns is also on the roster for now but he’s a non-tender candidate, so perhaps they will look to add more depth this winter.

Otañez, 28, has been on the Athletics’ 40-man since the summer of 2024. He has thrown 39 1/3 big league innings with a 4.81 earned run average. His 34.1% strikeout rate is impressive but he’s also walked 14% of batters faced. He has also tossed 55 minor league innings since the start of 2024 with a 6.05 ERA, 31.8% strikeout rate and 16.5% walk rate. The righty has powerful stuff, averaging in the upper 90s with his fastball, but clear control issues. He is still optionable, so the Rangers could keep him in the minors as they try to help him harness his arsenal.

Harris, 26, was once a notable prospect but his stock has faded in recent years. Dating back to the start of 2022, he has taken almost 2,000 minor league plate appearances with a .268/.364/.428 line and 103 wRC+. He has also stepped to the plate 50 times in the majors with a .217/.280/.435 line. He exhausted his final option season in 2025. The Rangers outrighted him to the minors in August but re-selected him later. Since this is his second career outright, he has the right to elect free agency.

McKinney, 31, is somewhat similar. He is also a former prospect who hasn’t delivered much on the hype. He has received almost 1,000 big league plate appearances but has produced a .209/.283/.382 line and 79 wRC+. He was added to the Texas roster late in the year as they were playing out the string. He has the right to elect free agency both due to having a previous career outright and three years of big league service time.

Photo courtesy of William Liang, Imagn Images

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