JANUARY 25: The Rangers have interest in keeping Minor but haven’t yet begun contract talks with either the left-hander or any other players, GM Jon Daniels told Sullivan and other reporters. “We haven’t had any extension discussions at this point. That’s more a February or March topic conversation with some guys we may hit on,” Daniels said.
JANUARY 24: Southpaw Mike Minor has already more than made good on his side of the three-year bargain he struck with the Rangers. With one more season left on that deal, he’s interested in working out a new pact to stay for more.
As Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News (Twitter link) and MLB.com’s TR Sullivan (Twitter link) report, Minor says he would like to hold discussions with the Texas organizations. It doesn’t seem that deep talks (if any) have been held to date, but spring camp is generally prime time for internal dealmaking.
Minor has thus far rewarded the Rangers’ faith. After bouncing back from a two-year layoff in a strong 2017 season with the Royals, he secured a surprising three-year, $28MM deal — a contractual model the Texas club has now followed in two more offseasons. The 32-year-old has handily outperformed that earning level, contributing 365 1/3 innings of 3.84 ERA ball with 8.2 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9.
Unfortunately, the Rangers have mostly struggled despite Minor’s contributions. But that isn’t a drawback so much as a motivating factor for the lefty.
“For sure,” Minor said when asked about his interest in sticking around. “I feel like I’ve endured the worst part of it. I can see the light at the end of the tunnel. I want to be a part of it. I don’t want to jump ship now when it’s going to be good.”
It’ll certainly be interesting to see how talks proceed. The Rangers have spurned trade interest in Minor even through the losing campaigns, presumably holding out hope he’d be a part of the team’s desired 2020 resurgence. There’s little question they value the veteran quite highly.
Still, it stands to reason the team will be wary of committing too much money over too long a term. There are quite a few positives and demerits in Minor’s profile.
For one thing, there’s Minor’s worrisome history of shoulder ailments to consider. But it’s hard to deny he has turned the page after two full seasons. Age is an obvious factor, but Minor is throwing harder than he did in his youth and produces as much spin on his fastball as any pitcher in the game. He’s not a dominating strikeout pitcher by any means but Statcast readings make clear he’s quite proficient at avoiding hard contact.
Won’t he have to check it out with Linda Kaye Henning first??
Underrated.
“hey, insert name here, want money?”
I guess it would be a minor contract.
This
Nice.
Get it done, JD.
Sign him. He’s earned an extension. Hopefully, a club friendly deal.
I wonder if he’d take a similar deal to the first one he signed with the Rangers. Maybe something like three years, $30-36 million with a few performance incentives or an option built in.
The AAV wouldn’t be overwhelming, but three years is a pretty good commitment to a guy who will be 33 when his next contract starts. That kind of security/guaranteed money might be attractive versus going year-to-year for the remainder of his career.
He could get 22-25 for a 1 year deal if he was a fa today.
I’d say 18 if his ceiling. Age and injury history would still be of concern.
But he’s not a free agent today. And it’s highly unlikely he’ll be coming off an all-star game appearance and top-10 finish in the Cy Young voting when he hits the market next winter.
Minor is a really good mid-rotation starter. If he’s expecting to get paid like something other than that at 33 years of age, he’ll likely have to get his next contract elsewhere.
Light at the end of the tunnel?? Not in Texas. They are still blasting that tunnel.
Things that should have been mentioned weren’t. Like that they have leverage over him in extension talks due to QO.
Most teams wouldn’t blink at a QO for a guy at his level. I think a 3 yr 60 mil extension works. 22.5 the first 2 years and 15 the last.
The Texas Rangers just stole hundreds of millions of dollars from taxpayers to build their new stadium, and they can’t put together a decent offense?
Of the regulars only their LF and DH were above MLB average hitters, and by only 9 and 10%, respectively.
Hey, Rangers, if you’re going to bribe your way to fun and profit, can you at least get some hitters?
Let the hate flow through you.
Made 1st baseman drop the fly foul ball to get 200ks… Minor mistake.