- Speaking of injury-plagued seasons, Max Scherzer’s 2024 campaign officially ended when a hamstring strain sent him to the Rangers’ 15-day injured list yesterday. Limited to a career-low 43 1/3 innings in 2024, Scherzer has already stated that he wants to return for an 18th big league season, and he told MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry (X link) and other reporters today that he is open to returning to Texas. Jacob deGrom, Jon Gray, Tyler Mahle, Jack Leiter, Kumar Rocker, Dane Dunning, and Cody Bradford are all lined up as rotation locks or candidates for the Rangers next season, so on paper, there might not be room for a reunion with Scherzer even on a one-year deal. That said, there’s also enough uncertainty within that projected depth chart that Texas might want still seek out more arms, and a pitcher with Scherzer’s track record still has plenty of upside even at age 40.
Rangers Rumors
Rangers Place Max Scherzer On 15-Day Injured List
The Rangers announced today that they’ve placed veteran right-hander Max Scherzer on the 15-day injured list due to a strained left hamstring. Right-hander Gerson Garabito was recalled to take Scherzer’s place on the active roster. Scherzer was scheduled to start tonight’s game against the Mariners, but that start will go to right-hander Dane Dunning instead.
The news brings to an end Scherzer’s 2024 season. In all, Scherzer managed just nine starts and 43 1/3 innings of work this year, the first time since his rookie year back in 2008 where he pitched less than 145 1/3 innings in a 162-game season. His results weren’t especially dominant even when healthy enough to take the mound, either. His 92.6mph average on his fastball was the lowest of his career, while a 22.6% strikeout rate, 3.95 ERA (100 ERA+), and a 4.18 FIP were all closer to pedestrian than elite. Since being acquired from the Mets in exchange for infield prospect Luisangel Acuna last summer, the veteran righty has pitched to a 3.57 ERA with a 3.79 FIP in 88 1/3 innings of work for Texas.
Those may turn out to be the only innings Scherzer pitches in a Rangers uniform. The future Hall of Famer’s contract in Texas runs only through the end of the current campaign, and he now appears ticketed for another trip through free agency. Scherzer celebrated his 40th birthday back in July and has dealt with a number of injury concerns this year ranging from offseason back surgery to nerve irritation in his throwing hand and triceps area on different occasions, but that hasn’t stopped the veteran from planning to continue pitching next year.
Even on the heels of the first injury-marred campaign of his career, Scherzer’s overall resume speaks for itself: the veteran boasts more than 3400 strikeouts in his career to go with eight career All-Star appearances, three Cy Young award wins, and three additional years wherein he was a finalist for the awards. The right-hander hasn’t posted an ERA north of 4.00 or a below-average ERA+ since 2011, and since then he sports a 2.95 ERA and 3.00 FIP, to say nothing of his career 3.78 ERA and 28.8% strikeout rate in the postseason and the two World Series rings he’s earned as a result of those 143 innings of work in the playoffs over the years. Still, at Scherzer’s age and coming off a platform season that raised plenty of questions about his ability to act as the workhorse starting pitcher he was throughout his 30s now that he’s entering his 40s, it’s not entirely clear what sort of market awaits the veteran ace in free agency.
Texas has exciting young arms like Kumar Rocker and Jack Leiter coming up from the farm system to join a 2025 rotation corps that includes Dunning, Jacob deGrom, Jon Gray, Cody Bradford, and Tyler Mahle, but a return to the Rangers certainly can’t be ruled out. After all, Scherzer is likely to be joined in heading for free agency by Nathan Eovaldi, Andrew Heaney, and Jose Urena. That quartet has combined to start 74 of the Rangers’ 154 games to this point in the season, or nearly half of the club’s contests. Given the combination of youth and lengthy injury histories at play in Texas’s current rotation group headed into next year, it would hardly be a surprise to see the club prioritize adding at least one arm to help carry the load of the departing starters.
Of course, a player with Scherzer’s storied resume could easily draw interest from plenty of other clubs in the league the league. The right-hander’s former teams in Detroit and D.C. are both seemingly ready to take the next step after lengthy rebuilding periods and could benefit from adding a veteran arm to their young rotations, and Scherzer’s hometown Cardinals appear likely to try and revamp their rotation mix behind staff ace Sonny Gray after their second-straight disappointing season. Given the ace’s talent when healthy and the fact that his age and recent injury history appear likely to limit him to a short-term deal, there’s countless teams that could reasonably be positioned to take a chance on the 40-year-old future Hall of Famer this winter.
Kirby Yates Discusses Free Agency, Openness To Return To Rangers
- Kirby Yates will be 38 on Opening Day 2025, and the veteran reliever told Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News that “I’ve got two more years that I could probably pitch at an effective level.” Whether or not this translates to a two-year deal remains to be seen this winter, but Yates has certainly helped his case with a very impressive season as the Rangers’ closer. A return to Texas would be welcomed, as Yates said “I hope those talks happen. I’ve enjoyed it here, I think it’s a great fit, my family’s liked it here, it’s an easy transition for me. If it works out, it works out. If it doesn’t, I’ll always be thankful for the Rangers organization, Rangers fans and everybody that’s treated me the way they have.” Staying with Texas would check off a couple of important boxes on Yates’ offseason wish list, as he noted that he’d ideally like to pitch near his home and family in Arizona, as well as relatively close to his extended family in his native Hawaii. Yates has an 1.23 ERA and 31 saves over 58 2/3 innings for the Rangers this season, more than delivering on the one-year, $4.5MM contract he signed last offseason.
Charlie Culberson Announces Retirement
Long-time utility player Charlie Culberson announced his retirement in an Instagram post today. He gave his thanks to his fans, coaches, teammates, agent, friends and family members for all the contributions they made to his journey. He also spoke to Justin Toscano of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution about his career and what might be next. He has considered coaching and broadcasting but thinks the latter is more likely.
Now 35, Culberson was drafted by the Giants in 2007 out of high school at the age of 18, going 51st overall. He developed into a notable prospect, getting attention for his ability to contribute in multiple facets of the game and at many positions. He made it to the majors with that club in cup-of-coffee fashion. He got into six games during the 2012 season and hit a meager .136/.136/.136 in his 23 plate appearances.
He was sent to the Rockies in the July 2012 trade that sent Marco Scutaro and cash considerations the other way. With Colorado, Culberson was able to get a bit more playing time, serving as a light-hitting utility guy. Over the 2013 and 2014 seasons, he got into 142 games for the Rockies, hitting .227/.273/.327 while playing all four infield positions and the outfield corners.
2015 was mostly a lost season for Culberson. He had surgery to repair a herniated disc in his back and didn’t play in the majors. He tells Toscano that he started thinking about his post-playing days at that time, as he didn’t know if any club would want him after the long layoff.
However, his best days as a player were still ahead. He had lost his roster spot with the Rockies and became a free agent, signing a minor league deal with the Dodgers going into 2016. His role with that club was fairly similar to his time in Colorado. He got into 49 games for the Dodgers over the 2016 and 2017 seasons, slashing .263/.289/.350 while bouncing between the outfield corners and the three infield positions to the left of first base. Perhaps the most memorable moment of his time in Los Angeles saw him hit a walk-off, 10th inning home run to clinch the West division for the club that year (YouTube clip from MLB). He also hit an extra-inning home run in Game Two of the 2017 World Series to pull the Dodgers within 7-6, though the Astros would keep the score there and win that game (YouTube clip from MLB).
In December of 2017, Culberson went to Atlanta in five-play swap largely motivated by financial considerations. Matt Kemp was sent to the Dodgers while Culberson, Adrián González, Scott Kazmir and Brandon McCarthy went the other way. This kicked off what was arguably the best part of Culberson’s career. A Georgia native, he became a fan favorite in Atlanta after hitting a couple of pinch-hit walk-off homers, earning the nickname “Charlie Clutch” (YouTube clips of those walk-offs from MLB).
Over the 2018 and 2019 campaigns, Culberson got into 221 contests for Atlanta and produced a league-average batting line of .267/.316/.457. As usual, he bounced all around the diamond, playing all four infield spots, the outfield corners, and even taking the mound for mop-up duty a few times. He was non-tendered after that 2019 season and re-signed with Atlanta for 2020 on a minors deal, eventually getting into 10 games in the shortened season.
He spent 2021 and 2022 with the Rangers, doing his usual utility thing. He hit .246/.292/.373 in 161 games over those two campaigns while playing every position except for center field and catcher. He was back in Atlanta for 2023 but bounced on and off the roster and only got one plate appearance. It was reported in January of this year that he was going to attempt to move to the mound and signed another minors deal with Atlanta, but he was released in March. He tells Toscano that he knew he was done at that time.
Culberson wasn’t a star player but clearly endeared himself to many fans by his still of play and penchant for coming through when it counted most. He got into 590 big league games and stepped to the plate 1,312 times. He collected 300 hits, including 30 home runs. He scored 140 runs, drove in 145 and stole 21 bases. Per Baseball Reference, he earned a bit over $5MM as a big leaguer. MLBTR salutes him on a fine career and wishes him luck for whatever is over the horizon.
Nathan Eovaldi Unlocks 2025 Player Option
Nathan Eovaldi completed four innings in tonight’s start against Toronto. That was the necessary cutoff to vest a $20MM player option for next season.
Eovaldi signed with the Rangers over the 2022-23 offseason on a two-year, $34MM guarantee. He collected a $2MM signing bonus and respective $16MM salaries during the first two years. To unlock the option, Eovaldi needed to throw a combined 300 innings over the two seasons. He has now done just that, reaching 156 frames this season after throwing 144 innings during his first campaign in Texas.
As MLBTR’s Steve Adams explored yesterday, there’s a good chance the righty gets to free agency in either case. Eovaldi has had a strong two-year run in Arlington. He worked to a 3.63 ERA last season. He carried a 3.67 mark into today’s start, although the Jays tagged him for seven runs tonight. Eovaldi has fanned more than 24% of opposing hitters while keeping the ball on the ground at a near-49% clip. A consistently excellent strike-thrower, he’s walking fewer than 6% of batters faced.
Eovaldi still looks like a quality #3 arm, one whom teams could comfortably tab for a playoff start. He pitched very well during the Rangers’ World Series run, working to a 2.95 ERA at more than six innings per start over six appearances. Eovaldi’s fastball checks in at nearly 96 MPH on average. He remains one of the harder-throwing starters in the majors even as he approaches his 35th birthday.
The primary knock against Eovaldi throughout his career has been his injury history. While he has ten seasons with 100+ innings pitched, he has had a few significant arm issues. Eovaldi has undergone Tommy John surgery twice. He missed time with back and shoulder problems in 2022 with the Red Sox — perhaps the biggest reason he was limited to two guaranteed years as a free agent.
Eovaldi has gone on the injured list in both seasons with the Rangers. He missed over a month with a forearm strain last year and lost a couple weeks to a groin strain this past May. The forearm injury could be a concern for some teams because of the previous Tommy John surgeries, but he has looked no worse for wear in the year-plus since that IL placement.
Eovaldi has received a qualifying offer in his career. That makes him ineligible for another QO, so Texas could not tie him to draft compensation if he decides to test the market. He would probably at least secure another two-year deal that pays him something close to $20MM on an annual basis. That’d presumably be preferable to the one-year player option, although Eovaldi is a Houston native who might prefer to stay in his home state. The option also provides insurance in case he suffers an injury in either of his final two starts of the season.
The rotation looks like an offseason priority for newly-extended baseball operations president Chris Young. Jacob deGrom is back at the top of the staff. They’ll hope for a healthy season from Tyler Mahle. Kumar Rocker debuted last week and could battle for a rotation spot. That’s also true of Rocker’s college teammate Jack Leiter, though he’s been hit hard in his first seven MLB appearances. Jon Gray should return from a season-ending foot injury in the fourth year of his free agent deal. Cody Bradford has pitched well in a swing role.
That’s a high-variance group. deGrom, Mahle and Rocker recently returned from Tommy John recoveries. Leiter, Rocker and Bradford (to a lesser extent) are light on big league experience. Max Scherzer, Andrew Heaney and José Ureña are headed to free agency. Eovaldi still seems likely to join them. Texas could try to bring Eovaldi back on another multi-year deal and should look for at least one outside acquisition even if they retain him.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
Nathan Eovaldi Approaching Vesting Player Option Threshold
During the 2022-23 offseason, then-free-agent righty Nathan Eovaldi inked a two-year, $34MM contract with the Rangers. The contract contained a provision for a vesting player option that would give Eovaldi say over his fate for the 2025 season, provided he stayed largely healthy over the course of the contract’s first two seasons. With a combined 300 innings pitched between 2023-24, Eovaldi gains a player option valued at $20MM for the 2025 campaign. The veteran right-hander’s most recent start brought him to 296 innings between the two seasons combined. He’ll trigger the vesting player option if he completes at least four innings in his next start, which is slated to come tomorrow when the Rangers host the Blue Jays. All but two of Eovaldi’s 26 starts this year have lasted at least four innings.
There’s a strong likelihood that Eovaldi will unlock that option tomorrow versus Toronto. It should be emphasized that he’s not locking himself into that $20MM salary for the 2025 season, however, but rather gaining the choice to exercise that $20MM option or turn it down in favor of a return to the open market. There’s perhaps some extra incentive for Eovaldi to consider the player option, as a Texas native — he was born and raised in the Houston area — but he should also be able to top that $20MM guarantee in free agency.
Eovaldi, 35 in September, has been a clearly above-average starter in each of his two seasons in Texas. He’s started a combined 51 games and pitched to a 3.65 ERA across his 296 frames with the Rangers, fanning 23.7% of his opponents against a 7% walk rate. Both marks are better than the league average. He’s also upped his ground-ball rate considerably thanks to an uptick in his splitter usage. A hearty 49.8% of the batted balls against Eovaldi have been grounders; he posted a 43.9% grounder rate in his final two seasons with the Red Sox from 2021-22.
Barring a late injury that throws his 2025 outlook into question, there’s a good case to decline that $20MM player option. Recent examples of multi-year free-agent deals for pitchers beginning in their age-35 season aren’t exactly plentiful, as can be seen in MLBTR’s Contract Tracker, but there are a few such cases that underscore the earning power he’ll have.
Back in the 2018-19 offseason, for instance, both J.A. Happ ($34MM) and Charlie Morton ($30MM) inked two-year deal in free agency. Happ had nearly identical numbers in his two prior seasons to those of Eovaldi at present, and he was a year older at the time (to say nothing of the fact that the price of pitching has increased since 2018). Eovaldi also has a steadier track record than he had at the time. Morton, meanwhile, had only just broken out as a high-end starter in his prior two-year run with the Astros — doing so with numbers that resemble Eovaldi’s current Rangers run. Kenta Maeda signed for two years and $24MM with the Tigers just last offseason and did as a 36-year-old coming off a lesser platform showing. Eovaldi clearly has greater earning power than Maeda had.
Generally speaking, few pitchers remain this effective into their mid-30s and return to the market at this time. Many top-tier starters ink contracts of five, six or seven years in length when they reach free agency around age 30 or 31. “Second-tier” free agent starters, as Eovaldi arguably was in his past couple trips to the market, often suffer injuries or begin to lose effectiveness as Father Time chases them down. However, Eovaldi remains a clear playoff-caliber starter, averaging 95.5 mph on his heater and logging better-than-average strikeout, walk and grounder rates while averaging nearly six innings per start.
We’ve certainly seen pitchers in their age-35 seasons or older command contracts worth $20MM or more in terms of annual value, but they’re typically on one-year deals or the type of anomalous contracts reserved for the sport’s elite arms. Justin Verlander has signed extensions and free-agent deals north of this rate in the latter stages of his career, but he’s a future Hall of Famer and three-time Cy Young winner. Max Scherzer’s record-setting three-year, $130MM deal spanned his age-37 through age-39 seasons, but like Verlander he’s a Cooperstown-bound, multi-time Cy Young winner. Eovaldi’s teammate Jacob deGrom signed the most eye-opening of these deals when he landed five years and $185MM from the Rangers, but a healthy deGrom is arguably the best pitcher on the planet.
Eovaldi isn’t going to command that type of premium annual value, but he has a clear case for another multi-year deal and could take aim at a contract paying him an annual salary in the $20MM vicinity (give or take a couple million). He’s an unusual case when it comes to getting a third bite at the free-agent apple in his mid-30s at a time when he hasn’t lost much, if any, of his effectiveness. Recent mid-rotation starters who could return to the market in their own mid-30s (e.g. Jameson Taillon, Michael Wacha, Marcus Stroman, Jon Gray) will surely be watching closely to see how the market treats Eovaldi this offseason.
Rangers Place José Ureña On 15-Day Injured List
José Ureña is almost certainly done for the year. The Rangers placed the right-hander on the 15-day injured list today with shoulder fatigue, recalling fellow righty Gerson Garabito in his place. Presuming the IL placement is retroactive to September 14, Ureña will not be eligible to return until September 29, the final day of the regular season. Thus, it’s more than likely he has already thrown his final pitch of the 2024 campaign.
Ureña, 33, signed a minor league deal with Texas this past offseason, and he made the Opening Day roster after a strong showing in the Cactus League (16 IP, 2.25 ERA). He has thrown 109 innings over 33 games this season, going back and forth between the starting rotation and the bullpen. That’s his highest innings total in a season since 2018, while his 3.80 ERA is the lowest of any season in his career. His 4.36 xERA and 4.66 SIERA aren’t quite as impressive, but they’re perfectly acceptable for a bulk reliever/spot starter. They’re also his best numbers in those categories since 2018. All told, the veteran has been valuable as an innings eater all season; only Nathan Eovaldi and Andrew Heaney have thrown more innings for the Rangers in 2024.
Indeed, Ureña has helped this team survive countless pitching injuries throughout the year, and it is bitterly ironic that his own season will most likely end with an injury. The ten-year MLB veteran will re-enter free agency this winter, and perhaps his pre-injury performance in 2024 will be enough to earn him a major league deal for 2025.
Garabito, 29, made his big league debut with the Rangers earlier this season. After eight years in the Royals organization, one season in the Giants system, and two years out of affiliated ball, the right-hander signed a minor league deal with Texas this past winter. He made his debut with a spot start in May, and over a few separate stints in the majors, he has put up a 3.86 ERA in 21 innings of work. He also has a 3.42 ERA over 55 1/3 innings at Triple-A. With a strong showing over the final two weeks of the season, he can hope to avoid the inevitable 40-man roster cuts coming in the offseason.
Chase Anderson Elects Free Agency
September 15: The Rangers announced this morning that Anderson has cleared waivers and elected free agency.
September 12: The Rangers on Thursday designated right-hander Chase Anderson for assignment, the team announced. His spot on the 40-man roster will go to top pitching prospect Kumar Rocker, whose previously announced promotion to the big leagues is now official. The Rangers have formally selected Rocker’s contract, and he’ll start tonight’s game against Seattle.
Anderson, 36, spent the bulk of the year with the Red Sox but was cut loose and signed a minor league pact with Texas in August. The Rangers selected him to the big league roster on Aug. 31 and now stand as the ninth team for which the journeyman Anderson has pitched in the majors. He appeared in only two games as a Ranger, pitching 6 1/3 innings and surrendering seven earned runs. In 52 innings with Boston, Anderson logged a 4.85 ERA.
Earlier in his career with the D-backs and Brewers, Anderson was a solid mid-rotation starter. From 2014-19, he pitched 857 innings of 3.94 ERA ball, striking out 20.2% of his opponents against a sharp 7.9% walk rate. He’s never been a flamethrower, but Anderson was able to miss enough bats, limit walks and duck enough homers that he had a nice six-year stretch of quality big league innings.
In the five seasons since that time, however, Anderson has regularly been hit hard. He’s posted an ERA north of 5.00 each year since 2020, ultimately combining for 250 1/3 innings with a flat 6.00 ERA. His velocity has been up and down along the way, and he’s seen both his strikeout and walk rates trend in the wrong direction — all while yielding higher levels of hard contact and significantly more home runs. He’s served as a cost-effective innings eater in multiple stops along the way — Toronto, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Colorado — but hasn’t found sustained big league success since the first six years of his career.
Anderson will be released or head to waivers now that he’s been designated and the trade deadline is behind us. He’ll very likely clear outright waivers if the Rangers go that route, at which point he could reject in favor of free agency right now or accept and wait until season’s end to become a minor league free agent.
Rangers Activate Jacob deGrom
Today: The Rangers have officially activated deGrom to make his first start of the 2024 season. In a pair of corresponding moves, the team optioned right-hander Owen White to Triple-A and transferred Corey Seager to the 60-day IL.
Sept. 10: Jacob deGrom makes his season debut on Friday. The Rangers announced that the two-time Cy Young winner will start that evening’s game in Seattle. It will be his first major league appearance since April 2023. deGrom underwent Tommy John surgery last June.
While deGrom’s return comes too late to give Texas any hope of a playoff push, it’s part of what should be a very exciting series. The Rangers will turn to top prospect Kumar Rocker for his MLB debut in Thursday’s opener. deGrom goes the following night. Manager Bruce Bochy told the beat this evening that Max Scherzer will be reinstated from the 15-day injured list to start on Saturday (X link via Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News). Texas will need to create space on the 40-man roster for both Rocker and deGrom.
deGrom has gotten through four rehab starts within the past few weeks. He has mowed down minor league hitters, striking out 15 while allowing only five baserunners over 10 2/3 innings. deGrom tossed four scoreless innings in just 49 pitches with Double-A Frisco on Saturday. Kennedi Landry of MLB.com wrote over the weekend that the Rangers had envisioned deGrom throwing somewhere around 60 pitches in that outing, though they ultimately elected to cap him at four innings when he pitched so efficiently. That could point to a potential 65-75 pitch count during this week’s start.
The Rangers should get three or four starts from deGrom before the end of the season. They’re not going to be of much significance in the standings (beyond the indirect effect of playing the Mariners, a fringe contender, at least once). Getting deGrom back for a few starts should at least give the pitcher and the front office some comfort going into the offseason. deGrom had battled a handful of arm issues late in his Mets tenure. He only managed six starts and 30 1/3 innings with Texas before suffering the significant elbow injury.
Few players are more important to the Rangers’ hope of a return to contention in 2025. deGrom may still be the best pitcher on the planet when healthy. He was utterly dominant for the Mets when he was able to pitch. He’d carried that form over in his first month in a Texas uniform, working to a 2.67 earned run average while striking out almost 40% of batters faced.
deGrom is going into the third season of a five-year, $185MM free agent deal. He’ll make $40MM next season, followed by successive salaries of $38MM and $36MM through 2027. The Tommy John surgery triggered a conditional team option in his deal for 2028. That’s valued at $20MM, though deGrom could push it to $30MM if he finishes in the top five in Cy Young balloting in any of the next three years.
Scherzer, meanwhile, has been out since the start of August because of a shoulder issue. He’d also missed most of the season’s first half rehabbing offseason back surgery and battling a nerve problem in his throwing hand. Scherzer has been limited to eight starts this season, turning in a 3.89 ERA across 39 1/3 innings. The future Hall of Famer will be a free agent next offseason. Scherzer has already declared he intends to continue pitching; he’ll be one of the top risk/reward plays in the starting pitching class.
Corey Seager To Undergo Sports Hernia Surgery
Today: As expected, the Rangers have transferred Seager to the 60-day IL, making room for deGrom on the 40-man roster and formally ending Seager’s 2024 season.
Sept 12: Corey Seager will undergo season-ending sports hernia surgery tomorrow, Rangers GM Chris Young told reporters (link via Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News). The five-time All-Star was placed on the 10-day injured list last week with what the team initially announced as hip discomfort. Texas could move him to the 60-day IL in a procedural move to activate Jacob deGrom tomorrow.
It’s the second sports hernia surgery of the year for Seager. He underwent the same procedure in January, albeit with an important distinction. Seager’s previous hernia was on his left groin; Grant writes that tomorrow’s procedure will address the right side. The injury is not expected to impact the shortstop’s readiness for Spring Training.
Seager suffered his previous hernia injury during last year’s postseason. He attempted to rehab without surgery but went under the knife a couple months later when the initial treatment plan was unsuccessful. That set him back during Spring Training but did not require a season-opening injured list stint. He’ll hope for a similarly swift recovery this time around so as not to have much of an impact of his offseason.
It’s a sour end to another excellent season for Seager. He popped 30 homers with a .278/.353/.512 batting line over 533 plate appearances. He started the year slowly, likely in part because of his limited ramp-up after January’s surgery. He has been one of the best players in the league since the start of May, raking at a .290/.362/.569 clip with 28 of his home runs. By measure of wRC+, Seager has been one of the ten best qualified hitters since May 1.
While this was a step back from last year’s MVP runner-up showing, Seager’s first few seasons in Arlington couldn’t have gone much better. He has been an All-Star in all three years as a Ranger. He has reached 30 homers in each. Texas disappointed this season, but Seager was obviously the best player on last year’s World Series winner. He’ll make $32MM next season before receiving $31MM annual salaries for the final six years of his $325MM free agent contract.
Josh Smith has taken over as the primary shortstop in Seager’s absence. He’ll presumably get the majority of the playing time there in the final couple weeks of the season. Smith was a rare bright spot in the Ranger lineup earlier in the year. He stepped in at third base when Josh Jung was out and was arguably the team’s second-best player behind Seager. Smith’s production has dropped off sharply in the second half, though he still carries an impressive .265/.350/.407 slash in 134 games overall.
