There was considerable hype surrounding outfielder Nomar Mazara when the Rangers promoted him to the majors in 2016. Mazara was one of baseball’s elite prospects at the time, but three-plus years later, he hasn’t lived up to the billing. While Mazara is now seemingly falling out of favor with the Texas organization, he remains intriguing to other franchises. With the July 31 trade deadline just a week away, interest in Mazara “is picking up,” specifically from teams that could be contenders in 2020, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes.
Although Mazara’s well into his major league career, he’s still just 24 years old. He’s also making a fair $3.3MM salary now and under control through 2021 via arbitration. That’s the good. The bad: Mazara’s more a big name than a big producer at this point.
Mazara smacked 20 home runs in each of the previous three seasons and has totaled 12 this year, but his overall numbers are lackluster. Mazara entered the year a .258/.320/.425 hitter with a subpar 92 wRC+ and just 1.5 fWAR across 1,720 plate appearances. His output this season has been even worse. Through 381 trips to the plate, Mazara has slashed .255/.307/.438 (86 wRC+) and accounted for a replacement-level fWAR (0.0). Southpaws flummoxed the left-handed Mazara during the prior three seasons, which has again been the case in 2019. They’ve held him to a horrific .200/.231/.345 line with 30 strikeouts against four walks thus far.
Not only has Mazara come up short in the batter’s box, but he has left something to be desired as a defender. In almost 4,000 innings of work as an outfielder, Mazara has totaled minus-20 Defensive Runs Saved, though his minus-2.3 Ultimate Zone Rating hasn’t been nearly as woeful. He’s at minus-5 and minus-1.9 in those categories this season, adding a more respectable minus-1 in Statcast’s Outs Above Average metric.
Statcast is also more bullish on Mazara as a hitter. For one, Mazara’s .340 expected weighted on-base average far outpaces his .314 real wOBA. He also ranks either a bit or well above average in hard-hit percentage, expected batting average and expected slugging percentage. But that may not be of much consolation to the Rangers, who have time and again seen Mazara fail to meet expectations over the years. And now that the slumping Rangers are falling out of playoff contention, they could deem Mazara expendable in the coming days.
Rangers ‘elite’ prospects continue to almost never pan out.
I’d happily give him a chance in RF next to Eloy and Robert next year.
He would definitely fit that power lefty bat the Sox need. Idk if he’s worth the prospects Texas would ask for.
Texas can have a lefty reliever (not named Bummer) for him. They don’t get legit prospects at this point. That ship sailed when he established himself as a .740 OPS guy.
They obviously would just hang onto him for that kind of return.
I agree. But Texas is in for a rude awakening if they’re expecting some kind of prospect haul for this dude.
Lol embarrassing post on your part. Maz may not bring back elite prospects but he’ll still bring back good ones.
A whole lotta BS
He’s staying in Texas
If Texas thinks they’re still in it, would they dare trade Mazara for Bumgarner?
That ain’t happening. If the Rangers trade Mazara it will be for prospects, not a rental starter while their sitting at .500.
Maybe?
Phils along with Minor and Bullpen piece for Medina and so on?
Bro the giants front office staff would have seizures if they heard that offer
Why would they give up Madbum for a failed prospect? They got Yaz, Dickerson, and Green for free. Also have Shaw as an of product. They need a middle infield prospect. And it will have to be within a teams top ten prospect list. Otherwise, can keep him for a compensation pick next summer.
Wrong. He wont be offer arbitration, bc they offer would be twice what hes worth
Mad Bum will definitely get a QO. If he accepts then the Giants get a franchise player back on a one year deal even if it’s overpriced and can try trading him again next deadline. If he declines it then they get a comp pick. He is in the weird middle ground for QOs but his track record will make him worth the offer.
feel like he might have more than 12 homers this year
He has 14.
Even worse
I thought 14 was more than 12? No?
They need to try another assistant hitting coach for their left-handed batters.
My gut feeling is that the Rangers would regret trading Mazara. I would love my team, the Royals, to take a chance on him, but I honestly don’t expect Texas to trade him.
Disagree. Good player but we need to get AB’s for Calhoun, Heineman and Solak. Moving Mazara and Choo gets that done.
what could they get for him
If I were the Jays management I would trade a couple of our infield prospects for him. Lordes in Left and Mazara in right. Keep Stroman we didn’t get anything for Halladay and he is solid. Trading for prospects is like playing the lottery, Keep Giles! Rogers has money! Spend a little.
Cool you say Jays b/c I was watching Mazara bat this weekend when he jacked a 450+ HR into the upper deck in Seattle, and I thought, “This guy reminds me a bit of Bautista at the plate.” Rangers just drafted two 3rd baseman in the 1st round, and they’re committed to Odor, who’s actually turning it around at the plate the last 5-10 games. We need a good 1B and the obvious: Pitching….
Mazara for Grichuk. Straight up. Salary included.
Adam Kloffenstein and Orelvis Martinez would probably be a good starting point for both sides. Jays top 5 stays untouched and Rangers are looking at 2 guys with a lot of potential.
As an Astros fan, I’ve seen Mazara struggle in the games the Stros have played the Rangers and you wonder why…..he seemed to have tremendous talent a couple of years back. I think both Mazara and Odor have under-performed and may need a change of scenery. Maybe Mazara is like JD Martinez was with the Stros…..glimpses of real talent, but never could put it together until he was somewhere else.
As a ranger fan i agree with u 100%
Ditto
Mazara is someone the Rangers signed out of like, middle school. Now he’s 24, and I have to say, he’s at least paid more dividends than Profar who was never healthy or consistent enough to make it. I suspect he’s sick of losing, and, yeah, a change of scenery would boost him to All Star levels one year.
He still young only 24. I think change of scenery could be what he needs. I think the Cubs Padres and Philly being good fits for him.
It is way too early to give up on him. If anything, call up Calhoun and send Mazara to Nashville.
Age wise ur right, but considering hes had 4 seasons of near identical stats. I feel like hes reached his peak. Could be late bloomer nelly type guy, but could be a ruben mateo, too
Mateo broke his leg, the femur to make it even worse, and that is what derailed his career. Pure physical change not a lack of mental ability.
Why would you let him rot in triple a if he’s gone next year?
you let him “rot” in AAA because theres others rotting there that deserve the call. scott heinemen and calhoun are being blocked by this dude which is rediculous
Calhoun is not being blocked by Mazara. They don’t play the same position.
Willie has never played an inning of right field as a professional and doesn’t have the tools to get innings there in the future. Heineman hasn’t played much out there either for that matter.
Mazara, for all his ills, is the best defensive right fielder on the roster right now. Gallo probably could hold that title, but they’ve been hesitant to play him out there in the past, favoring left and center for him.
If you really want Calhoun and/or Heineman to get time on the major league roster, it won’t be coming at Mazara’s expense. It will be coming at Choo’s, Pence’s or DeShields’.
cubs fans will say “addison straight up for mazara”
Cubs fans would say that he was a RF butcher and would get wrapped up in the ivy causing great blooper reels.
Sox fans are the first people on every Cubs thread because they feel inadequate
No, we just have no respect for Cubs fans because 90 percent of them are dolts.
This was a rangers thread…
Rangers fans will say “Why?”
They just need to send him down for a little bit. Light a fire under him. Besides if they trade him now, I don’t see them getting very much back.
He’s just an average player. I’ll be surprised if he ever hits 30 HR in a season. Maybe he’ll do it once in his prime. He’s also slow, and bad defensively. Calhoun would have better numbers if he were playing everyday. Texas also needs to look at Heineman. Hopefully JD ships out Mazara. I highly doubt it though. Daniels loves him.
Calhoun is on his way back as soon as gallo officially hits IL, prolly tomarrow. Heinaman has been on IL all season and i believe out for year. But do have taveras, martinez, and bubba 1-2 seasons away
Heineman’s been back for a few weeks now, and he’s crushing the ball in AAA. He’s hitting .380 in Nashville.
I’m not sure Taveras or Martinez will be much in the big leagues, if they even make it. I don’t get the hype on Taveras.
Bubba will be a star if he can ever stay healthy.
The hype on Traveras is that hes hitting .270 with a .870 OPS in AA, as a 20 yearold. He’s also the best defender in CF in the Ranger’s system. Saw him play in Frisco and he is the fastest player I have seen in awhile. I can see why they think he is a high contact version of Delino Deshields. The kid is obviously talented.
You must be looking at different stats on Taveras. The ones I get have him hitting .250 with a .622 OPS in AA. In fact, his career minors OPS is .675. He hasn’t done anything in the minors. He may be young, and talented, but if you can’t produce in the minors, then what are his chances in the majors? He still has time, but he has to start putting up some numbers. Right now he’s just a lot of hype. There is a reason he keeps dropping down the Rangers top prospect lists.
yep I was going on memory of his stat line in high A before they promoted him, still doesn’t change the point though. The kid is actually younger than I thought (20) and you are writing him off. He can’t even legally drink yet haha, let him play for awhile.
Taveras is really young, but his hit tool has been underwhelming at every level so far. Hopefully that ill change at some point or it will limit his ceiling to being a fourth or fifth outfielder at the major league level.
Calhoun can’t play right field, so comparing him to Mazara as an every day player makes no sense. It’s not Mazara that’s keeping Willie off the roster/field. It’s the veteran LF/DH guys in Choo and Pence, and both of those guys have earned their spots in the lineup.
You could argue that moving Choo to right field full time would open a spot for Calhoun in left. But Choo is an absolute butcher in the outfield and makes the thoroughly average Mazara look like a Gold Glover by comparison.
Nomar never lived up to his prospect pedigree but isn’t the type you’d expect a 2nd Division or non contender to covet. Patience & more development time isn’t the issue. The prospect valuation overvalued his tools and in particular athleticism. I can’t imagine a significant return for Mazara. In some ways he reminds me of old Yankees farm hand Jose Tabata.
Is there a RF that can replace Mazara as the everyday RF for Texas? Also, what teams are interested in him? Indians? Throw in piece for Bauer? I’m not buying this report of “interest” from other clubs.
Plenty of outfielders… Choo, santana, deshields, pence, gallo calhoun, with martinez, bubba, and taveras in minors Might have to shuffle guys around but outfield is where they have plenty of depth.
traveras is soo young right now. Plus he is a very dofferent player, he is contact and speed, not power. Calhoun is the obvious choice. Time to see what Willie can do without looking over his shoulder at a demotion all of the time.
Gallo would immediately take over. He’s got one of the strongest arms in the game. Calhoun would take over LF.
Only Calhoun and Gallo are long term options. I would imagine Gallo will more than likely have to move back to the infield given his size, although he’s been really good in CF so far this year. Pence and Santana should be traded this year, Choo’s contract is up soon and isn’t an everyday OF, let alone everyday RF. Desheilds is a fringe major leaguer, but hey, if you want to keep him around for more years in Arlington that’s great. All the prospects you mentioned are far from a sure thing as well… more than likely Texas picks up a free agent to fill the significant talent gap for next year.
Gallo will eventually take over RF unless Maz finds another level. Gallo may get occasional 1B duties as well but that’s a waste of his arm and he doesn’t want to play 3B. So I doubt he moves back to the infield.
Doubtful, Gallo will be the leftfielder for awhile, has he ever even played right? Woodward has already said he is done at 1B and 3B is out of the question.
He’s played a handful of innings out there, but the organization clearly prefers him in left and center.
He’s the one alternative to Mazara with the tools to play a quality defensive right field. Most of these others that folks keep mentioning as replacements are borderline defensively in left.
If the Rangers are capable of anything, it’s a Surprising Development. Elvis Andrus and Rougned Odor are the only safe guys on that whole 25/40 man roster. I suspect they stand pat this year. It would be stupid to trade what they’ve long coveted, which are at least a couple reliable SP’s who can go 7 innings and win games, for younger guys
they hope can…eat up innings and win games…down the road? Mike Minor and Lance Lynn get “Meets” or “Exceeds” expectations in all categories. Period. They have Minor next year, Lynn next 2 years…
yea i hope they just keep em, as a lifelong ranger fan good pitching here is so dang rare.
Reds seem like a great fit here since one of their biggest needs is a controllable left-handed hitter and right field will be open if Puig is traded.
Another example of a guy promoted that was not ready for the majors. He can’t make the adjustments needed to succeed. It’s a shame these GMs are in such a results driven era that these kids don’t get the proper developmental time. He has talent and power for days just needs an opportunity to figure it all out.
Its crazy looking at his numbers and realizing they’d make him a perennial all-star in the 80’s haha
Keep the pitching. Times up on Odor and Mazara. As a Rangers fan, it hard to watch all the failed trades over the years and prospects not work out. Keep the pitching and build on it for next year.
+1 to the author for using “flummoxed” in the article.
How about Jon nogowski, edmundo sosa and adolis garcia from the cards for mazara. Garcia has 20 bombs and 70 ribs in triple a, sosa can play the whole infield and nogowski is opsng like 875 and plays first and the outfield?
Oh man. I got snaked again. That headline said “younger players” when I read it and it’s the same post from last night. I’ve been tricked again. Come on MLBTR, stop reposting the same story with no new information. At least put a time update on it.
9:11am Jeff had some chili. Post some kind of an update with it. Make it not the same. Geeez