AL West Notes: Rangers, Morse, Morales, Astros

Though the Rangers worked to bolster their struggling lineup at the deadline, GM Jon Daniels felt the market for bats was thin, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports. “There was not a lot out there really appealed to us,” he said. "Teams now are signing young players long-term and you aren’t getting the same caliber of player to free agency that you once did.” The Rangers rank ninth in the AL in runs per game but are 47-9 when scoring four or more runs, Grant notes.  Here's more out of the AL West..

• Mariners GM Jack Zduriencik hinted that he hopes to re-sign some of the club's veterans, writes Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times.  Jack Z inferrred that he didn't deal pending free agents Mike Morse or Kendrys Morales because he'd like them to be a part of the club going forward.
• The Astros inquired about Royals prospect Kyle Smith in talks last year before finally nabbing him in this week's Justin Maxwell trade, GM Jeff Luhnow tells Brian McTaggart of MLB.com. Though his club wasn't aiming to trade Maxwell, the team jumped at the chance when Smith's name came up in talks, Luhnow says. 
• The Rangers didn't add a bat, but the deadline wasn't a failure, writes Richard Durrett of ESPNDallas.com.
• While the Bud Norris deal leaves a hole in the Astros' rotation, they have some arms coming up through the minors including Brad Peacock and Asher Wojciechowski, notes MLB.com's Brian McTaggart.

Aaron Steen contributed to this post.