Besides the Angels and Brewers themselves, perhaps no team was as impacted by the Zack Greinke trade as the Rangers. Here's the latest on the Rangers' own pursuit of Greinke and how they plan to counter the Angels' newest salvo in the battle for the AL West.
- Brewers GM Doug Melvin told reporters (including Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel) that the Rangers were the other finalist for Greinke's services. The Rangers offered Leury Garcia, Chad Bell and Justin Grimm to the Brewers.
- Had the Rangers been willing to include third base prospect Mike Olt in their offer to the Brewers, Greinke probably would've ended up in Texas, USA Today's Bob Nightengale. FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal, however, reports the Brewers wanted Martin Perez and didn't "insist" on Olt or Jurickson Profar, though Texas still felt the requested package of prospects was too much (both links are to Twitter).
- With Greinke gone, the Rangers won't necessarily try to acquire Josh Johnson or James Shields, a source tells MLB.com's T.R. Sullivan. The Marlins and Rays have put a high price tag on their aces and the Rangers may wait to see if they lower their demands. Sullivan notes that if the Rangers weren't willing to deal the likes of Olt for Greinke, they wouldn't trade him or other top prospects for another pitcher who they didn't value as highly.
- The Rangers also valued Cole Hamels and Cliff Lee more than they did Greinke, reports Jeff Wilson of the Forth Worth Star-Telegram (Twitter link). Hamels just signed an extension to remain in Philadelphia and the Rangers shied away from the large salary still owed to Lee through the 2015 season.
- The Rangers are "unlikely" to get Johnson, while they're still in play for Shields, tweets CBS Sports' Jon Heyman.
A deal for a SP is probably not happening now for Texas, at least not a top flight one.
They absolutely need to make a move though. Darvish getting shelled again tonight only emphasizes their need. They dont have the pitching to win a WS right now.
Darvish’s last 11 starts (including tonight): 70.1 IP, 41 ER, 5.25 ERA.
They cant go into the post-season with Matt Harrison and 3 other question marks.
Not watching the game I guess? Multiple defensive let downs, he’s not pitching poorly.
Yes, that has a ton to do with those other 10 starts since mid-May. It hasnt been pitching every time out. He’s a great strikeout guy but he walks way too many.
he has a 3.75 FIP in his last 10 starts matching his 3.78 FIP this season. he’s fine
Found out about Yuuuu.
If the Rangers wanted Shields, who would the Rays want back? I don’t think they’d want Olt as Longoria is their 3B and putting him at 1B would be a waste of his defensive talents. I don’t see any way they get Profar. Shields makes sense for the Rangers, but I don’t think the two teams match up well. Are there prospects I’m missing the Rays would want? (Don’t see Martin as being a centerpiece)
Why does sheilds make sense for the Rangers? His one good season in his career? He’d be their 3rd? 4th best pitcher this season.
2007 and 2008 Shields was a top pitcher in the AL. 9th and 18th in WAR those two years. 3rd and 4th in WHIP those two years.
EDIT: 2011 is assumed to be his ‘one good season’, no?
I could care less about WHIP. I’m not saying he’s a BAD pitcher, I’m just trying to say that he doesn’t do much for the Rangers. They need someone for game one, after that they’re fine.
Translation: He was great 4 to 5 years ago…
Is your memory really that bad? Shield was arguably the 3rd best pitcher in the AL last year behind Verlander and Weaver.
Merely a translation of EXACTLY what you posted. Where did you mention last year at all??
these are threaded comments, so each reply is to another comment. I replied to ”
Why does sheilds make sense for the Rangers? His one good season in his career? He’d be their 3rd? 4th best pitcher this season.” with ”
2007 and 2008 Shields was a top pitcher in the AL. 9th and 18th in WAR those two years. 3rd and 4th in WHIP those two years.”
wow… read your own comment, and apply it to yourself.
if you polled 1000 people 990 would say 2011 was his best season. I believe that is assumed.
Well, Olt can easily play in the minors for the rest of 2012 and 2013 season. If he’s MLB ready by 2014 then put him in first base. Longoria contract has club option until 2016. By then, they’ll just move Olt to third.
I think if Olt plays all of 2013 in AAA, he’s wasting ABs. He’s basically MLB ready right now. Moving him to 1B negates a bunch of his value too.
I’d take Olt regardless.
The Rays could flip Olt to another team after the trade, get better value for Shields.
I’m pretty sure Olt can handle 1B next year…
Or they coulf flip Longoria for all of King Midas’ gold.
just give us profar abd we can call it a deal
I love the developing pissing contest between Texas and Anaheim.
I don’t see a pissing contest. I see the Rangers saying “no thank you” and the Angels saying, “sure, we’ll give you what you want.”
It’s not a pissing contest unless you consider this knee jerk reaction by the Angels to be a pissing match.
Angels pretty much will bend over backwards having seeing their rival go to the World Series 2 times in a row.
If I were the Rangers, I’d pay more for Shields than I would Greinke anyway. Shields has proven he can be good under pressure in the toughest division in baseball.
No he hasn’t. He’s had one good season and he’s what, 30?
2007 and 2008 were good years.
I’d say they’re closer to slightly above average. I just don’t think it’s worth the prospects to slot him in the back half of the rotation.
As I said above – 2007 and 2008 Shields was a top pitcher in the AL. 9th and 18th in WAR those two years. 3rd and 4th in WHIP those two years.
Not only that but last year was a good year. 16-12, 2.82 ERA and pitched almost 250 innings. Hard to have that good of an ERA pitching that many innings.
his comment implied that last year was his ‘one’ good season. 2011 was his best season, 2007 and 2008 were both good seasons though.
Shields isn’t doing that great this year, I’ll give you that. But as hawksfan pointed out, and as last year was good, Shields has had success. He also has more postseason experience and pitches in a far tougher division than Greinke does.
Bahahaha. Have fun getting passed by Oakland and Los Angeles.
Yeah, with their fantastic lineups and bullpens. The only reason they’re even close is because the Ranger’s bats have been slumping for two months
And the Rangers have zero consistent pitching behind Harrison.
There’s my point. The Rangers have played their worst baseball and still haven’t been passed, mostly because the Angels and A’s are just as bad. The A’s had to win 16 of 18 to be in the conversation. What happens when they go back to winning 9 or 10 of 18? Or when the Angel’s bullpen completely implodes? Or, most importantly, when Hamilton, Young, and Kinsler remember what they’re supposed to do with a bat?
Oh my did you just say Oakland passes texas……not in this decade
Said ESPN of the 2002 Athletics.
Texas has been waiting for Oakland and Los Angeles the past 2 months, and they still haven’t caught up.
I hope the Marlins change their minds on Johnson, because to me he is the ideal candidate for the Rangers. A competitor on the mound with an extra year of control sounds like a typical Nolan Ryan/JD move.
I can’t wait to see the package we get for Shields now!
They shouldn’t get much for an average pitcher.
He’d be the Rangers’ #2 right now …
4, maybe 5.
You aren’t in reality regarding the dire condition of their staff.
Yes, a pitcher with a 4.52 ERA would drastically improve anyone.
Dire condition…. Well, Feliz is scheduled to be back after 1 or 2 more starts, Ogando can be moved back to a starter. The Rangers are not panicking…
“if the Rangers weren’t willing to deal the likes of
Olt for Greinke, they wouldn’t trade him or other top prospects for
another pitcher who they didn’t value as highly.”
you don’t say
Some other people apparently disagree evident by the Olt for Shields discussion. Which is lunacy.
I wouldn’t be so sure. Desperation does funny things to GMs…especially when they know this is their last best shot to win a WS. Their rotation is Matt Harrison and pray for rain right now.
Ok, why are they desperate? Why is this their last shot? Is it because Hamilton is leaving? Just so you know, he’s hit .230 in the post season… not exactly carrying them.
.230…in a whopping 145 PA. Small sample size to say the least.
Napoli is also a FA FWIW.
If they want to compete in 2012, they need another top starter. Lewis gone, Darvish scuffling badly…good luck with that.
If anything Lewis being done for the season might be a blessing in disguise. Lewis is a free agent after this season, and with this injury, his value might be such that the Rangers can afford to sign him to another small $ 3 year deal.
A very good point overall. Lewis will get a much smaller deal next year as a result of the tendon surgery. He might even take a 1 year deal to rebuild his value with the aim of a much bigger deal next fall instead.
it’s necessarily true that they won’t give up more for a player they value less
what you’re getting at is that they may end up valuing someone else more now that greinke is with the angels, which is possible. but sullivan’s statement itself is meaningless
Last shot at a WS?
Not last but their last best shot with their current core IMHO.
You must not know who Jon Daniels is…
He’s a solid GM but after coming up just short 2 years running and having serious question marks for 2013 and forward, there is pressure there to make a big move. Especially given the Angels improving.
This is why I feel the Rangers could now do a “couple things”..
1. Add an outfielder, improving the lineup dramatically. (who’s available?)
I’d say a package deal of Gentry and some prospects could do it.
2. Trade for a pitcher who has upside/explosive stuff, and is cost effective..(Francisco Liriano)
3. Assuming the Ranger club is in “win now” mode which I’m sure everyone can agree with me they are. Give up the farm and go get Cliff Lee.
Profar, Mike Olt, Martin Perez because that’s what it’ll take and I’m sure the Rangers would ask for some dough ($$) as well…
No pitcher is worth all 3i of them. Even if he’s free.
I cant imagine Daniels being stupid enough to even give up 2 of the 3 in any trade. I could see him giving up 1 of them in the right deal but not more than that. He’s too good a GM to sacrifice that much.
Why would the Rangers give up anything resembling that for a soon to be 34 year old declining pitcher that makes that much money?
Let me preface by saying, as a Brew fan, I’m happy with what we got. But if Texas could have had Greinke for Olt and Perez, and declined, they made a BIG mistake.
Olt and Perez? They didn’t deserve either for a rental.
Again, maybe…maybe not. The point is that there division rival has 4 aces and a red hot offense. Good luck overcoming that.
They don’t have to overcome that for 2 months, just not slip 5 games.
I don’t see the Rangers holding them off now. It was in question even before the Greinke trade.
Is that why they’re fighting to stay out of third in the division right now?
People use the term ace too loosely.
The Angels definitely have a big name rotation: Weaver, CJ, Greinke, Haren, Santana (#1, #7, NL #20, #32, #42)
The Rangers current rotation includes Harrison, Darvish, Holland, Feldman, Oswalt (#8, #20, ~34, unranked, unranked). Rangers took a big hit with Lewis (#14) out for the season. Feliz’s ERA would currently rank #10.
The Rangers aren’t scared, there will be no knee jerk reaction. If there’s a move to be made, it will either be a small bench move or a blockbuster pitching move.
~ denotes where he would be if not sick
That’s a pretty steep price to pay for a rental.
Maybe. But the price of passing on him may be even higher.
I don’t think the Marlins will drop their asking price for Johnson. JJ is not a player they’re looking to get rid of, and they still have him signed through 2014. That is why they have a high asking price: they will not let him go unless they receive an offer that blows them away. The Rangers have a better chance of trading for Shields.
JJ is not signed through 2014. Just next year.
Come on JD go pry away King Felix from the Mariners, thats the only guy profar gets traded for.
You’ve been watching too much Baseball Tonight.
Actually too much Buster Olney on twitter
Doesn’t change the fact that Felix and Kershaw are probably the only 2 guys that puts Profar on the table.
The Rangers better hope Olt is the second coming in his six controllable years because they went from penthouse to outhouse in less than a week. No Colby Lewis and didn’t get one of the pitchers they needed with Lewis healthy.
The Dbacks would be happy to trade you Justin Upton to offset the Angels big move for the right price.
They’ve already decided to keep him for now…as if they were ever even serious about trading him. It was obvious they were bluffing.
Obvious they were bluffing when multiple reporters have said he will be traded at a later time (offseason) if he’s not moved now. Just because the team says they almost certainly won’t move Upton before the trade deadline doesn’t mean they won’t. This could be a mechanism to raise his value. Moreover, the owner’s comments indicate Upton has fallen out of favor in AZ.
How good would Texas look now if they dealt Profar and Olt up to Seattle and got King Felix? Dunno if it would happen or not, but if it did, would certainly be a giant one-up for the Rangers
Supposedly, even if the Rangers offered them, Seattle isn’t trading King Felix… maybe next year, but after next year’s trade deadline, his value plummets.
I still see Lee being in Texas somehow. Ruben never says what he is going to do. Lee plus cash for Olt and Martin/Perez. If Texas can get Lee at 3 years 60-70 Million, I’m sure they’d be more than thrilled.
I’m a huge Lee fan, but it seems like the right move for both teams right now. Unless the Phillies want to go into next year without a CF and 3B and STILL no bullpen, it’s a move that Ruben must consider.
Lee to the Rangers make too much sense not to happen. Rangers need a front line starter, Philly needs a young 3rd baseman , CF and salary relief. The teams are a perfect match.
As a Phillies fan, I would be ecstatic with such a deal…which is why I dont see it happening. Seems too much in favor of Philly.
I don’t see Texas wanting to take on $20 mil worth of Cliff Lee, in addition to losing prospects. If it was just the money, like it was 2 years ago in Lee’s FA year, they’d do it. But prospects and all that money? I don’t see it.
If that’s all that Texas was willing to offer then Melvin made the right deal. This should have been about who could offer the best infield prospect, and that was definitely the Angels in this case.