We learned yesterday that Rangers closer Joe Nathan had voided his 2014 option. The $9MM club option became voidable upon Nathan's 55th finished game of the year. Because Texas technically exercised its option, it will not have to pay Nathan a $750k buyout. Here's more on the situation …
- The Rangers will not make Nathan a $14MM+ qualifying offer, tweets CBSSports.com's Jon Heyman. If that holds true, of course, Nathan will be able to seek a multi-year deal without asking suitors to give up a top draft pick to sign him. MLBTR's Tim Dierkes has predicted a two-year, $26MM pact for the soon-to-be 39-year-old.
- Texas GM Jon Daniels certainly sounds like he is — as expected — prepared to move on from Nathan's successful tenure at the back of the team's pen. As Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reports, Daniels says he told Nathan and agent Dave Pepe "that if he came back, we'd have to consider trading from our bullpen." And as reported by Anthony Andro of FOX Sports Southwest, Daniels conveyed his "expectation [that] there are other teams that maybe have a bigger need in the bullpen and put more resources towards it than we are."
- Unsurprisingly, with Nathan hitting the open market, the Rangers anticipate an internal replacement. Daniels says he "expect[s] our closer to be someone who is already in the organization." With in-house options like Neftali Feliz, Joakim Soria, and Tanner Scheppers, Daniels says the club "probably won't name [a closer] until spring training to see how things play out."
