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MLB Awards 2024 All-Star Game To Texas Rangers

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MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred announced today that the Texas Rangers will host the 2024 All-Star festivities. The 94th “midsummer classic” will be held July 16th of that year.

This will be the second time the Rangers have played host to the game, though it will be the first at Globe Life Field, which opened in 2020. The only other time the club hosted was in 1995, at the Ballpark in Arlington.

“Major League Baseball is pleased to award the 2024 All-Star Game to the Rangers and the Cities of Arlington and Fort Worth, which presented a robust bid for All-Star Week,” Manfred says in the statement. “The Rangers stepped up under difficult circumstances and Globe Life Field served as terrific host for the 2020 Postseason, including the World Series. We are excited to once again feature Baseball’s newest ballpark on a global stage next summer.”

The next two All-Star games will be hosted by AL West teams, since the Seattle Mariners are hosting the 2023 contest. The 2025 host has not yet been announced, but 2026 will be in Philadelphia to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Rangers Hire Will Venable As Associate Manager

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The Rangers announced Will Venable is joining their coaching staff, working under new manager Bruce Bochy as associate manager. The former big leaguer had been working as bench coach with the Red Sox.

Venable, 40, has spent the past five seasons working on a big league staff. He served as a base coach with the Cubs from 2018-20. Venable, who had interviewed for a managerial vacancy in Boston during the 2020-21 offseason, ended up being tabbed as bench coach under Alex Cora — who returned as manager after being dismissed and suspended for the 2020 campaign.

The Princeton graduate has never managed in the big leagues (aside from a brief interim stint while Cora was sidelined by COVID-19 this year), but he’s frequently been regarded as a manager-in-waiting. Venable has interviewed for a number of lead positions in recent winters, sitting down with the Tigers, A’s, Astros, Cubs and Giants in prior offseasons. He reportedly drew some attention from the Royals in their search last month, but it’s unclear whether they ever met with him before tabbing Rays bench coach Matt Quatraro.

With all the managerial positions filled, it looked likely Venable would reprise his role as Cora’s right-hand man for a third season. Instead, he’ll make the jump to Arlington to work with Bochy in the veteran skipper’s return to the dugout after three years. Venable was a prospect in the San Diego farm system during Bochy’s time as manager in 2005-06. Bochy was already in San Francisco by the time Venable made the big leagues, but he did overlap there with Chris Young. The Texas general manager was a teammate of Venable’s in San Diego through 2010, and the former outfielder also had a brief playing stint as a Ranger late in the 2015 campaign.

Rangers Select Six Players

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The Rangers have selected the contracts of six players who’d otherwise have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Infielders Luisangel Acuña and Jonathan Ornelas, outfielder Dustin Harris and pitchers Cole Winn, Owen White and Zak Kent have all gotten added to the 40-man roster, which is now at capacity.

Acuña, the younger brother of Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr., is a solid prospect in his own right. A right-handed hitter, Luisangel Acuña plays the middle infield. Baseball America credits him with plus defense at shortstop and considers him the #6 prospect in the Texas organization. Despite not turning 21 years old until March, he’s already played his way to Double-A. Acuña split the season between High-A Hickory and Double-A Frisco, combining for a .277/.369/.426 line through 409 plate appearances. He struggled in Double-A after an excellent showing in High-A and looks likely to start next year in Frisco.

Texas drafted Ornelas in the third round out of an Arizona high school in 2018. A righty-swinging infielder who’s played each of shortstop, second base and third base, he spent the whole season in Frisco. Ornelas had a solid .299/.360/.425 mark through 580 plate appearances, collecting 14 home runs and stolen bases apiece. He’s not among Texas’ top 30 prospects at BA but has shown decent contact skills and an ability to play the infield.

Harris was an 11th-round pick of the A’s in the 2019 draft out of a Florida junior college. Oakland dealt him to Texas in the Mike Minor trade in 2020. A left-handed hitter, he’s played mostly first base and left field in the minors. Harris is a bat-first prospect who’s coming off a .257/.346/.471, 17-homer showing in 85 games with Frisco. BA slots him 10th in the organization, praising his contact and power combination.

Winn was the 15th overall pick in the 2018 draft out of a California high school. The right-hander was regarded as a possible big league rotation piece heading into this year after a strong Double-A performance. He scuffled during his first extended crack with Triple-A Round Rock, allowing a 6.51 ERA with a massive 15.2% walk rate over 28 starts. He’ll try to right the ship next season and get back into the MLB rotation picture, but there was never much doubt he’d secure a 40-man roster spot this winter.

White, a 2nd-round pick in the 2018 draft out of a North Carolina high school, has surpassed Winn on the prospect radar. The 23-year-old righty didn’t throw a professional pitch until 2021 because of Tommy John surgery and the cancelation of the 2020 minor league season, but he’s performed well to make up for lost time. He put up a 3.59 ERA in 80 1/3 frames between Hickory and Frisco, striking out 31.7% of opponents. He placed fifth in the system on BA’s midseason update and could factor into the MLB rotation at some point next year.

Kent was a ninth-rounder in 2019 out of VMI. He started all 24 of his appearances in the upper minors last season, working to a 3.94 ERA through 109 2/3 innings. He punched out a decent 23.8% of batters faced against a 9.3% walk rate. He’s 25th in the system at Baseball America and could be a back-of-the-rotation option in the near future.

Jeff Wilson was first to report the moves.

Braves Acquire Dennis Santana From Rangers

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The Rangers announced they’ve traded reliever Dennis Santana to the Braves in exchange for cash considerations. Atlanta designated Jackson Stephens for assignment in a corresponding 40-man roster move.

Santana soaked up plenty 0f middle relief innings in Arlington, pitching 58 2/3 frames across 63 outings. He generally struggled over that stretch, posting a 5.22 ERA with a below-average 21.2% strikeout percentage and an elevated 11% walk rate. The right-hander has posted subpar strikeout and walk marks throughout his parts of five seasons in the majors with the Dodgers and Rangers, contributing to a career 5.12 ERA over 139 innings.

The 26-year-old has flashed some interesting traits that suggest he could yet be a productive MLB bullpen arm. He’s gotten swinging strikes between 11% and 12% of his total offerings the past couple seasons, a solid enough rate. Santana has also induced ground-balls on almost half the batted balls against him the last couple years, and his sinker sat just under 97 MPH this past season. He had some success against left and right-handed hitters alike, but he was victimized by an extremely low strand rate that’s likely to bounce back moving forward.

Santana is out of minor league option years, so he’ll have to break camp on the Atlanta roster or be made available to other teams. MLBTR contributor Matt Swartz projects him to receive a $1.1MM salary if tendered an arbitration contract, and the Braves’ acquisition suggests they could be prepared to do so this week. That’d figure to give him an inside shot at securing a middle relief role out of Spring Training.

Stephens inked a minor league deal with Atlanta over the offseason. He cracked the big league roster a few days into the year and wound up tallying 53 2/3 innings across 39 outings. The 28-year-old had a solid 3.69 ERA with a decent 46.3% grounder percentage but a 20% strikeout rate. Stephens’ swing-and-miss rate also sat at a subpar 9.3%, and the Braves have elected to roll the dice on Santana’s upside in swapping out potential middle innings arms.

Atlanta will have a week to deal Stephens or run him through waivers. If he goes unclaimed, he’d have the right to become a minor league free agent.

Martín Pérez Accepts Qualifying Offer

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Left-hander Martín Pérez has accepted the $19.65MM qualifying offer that was extended to him by the Rangers, his agent Gustavo Marcano of Octagon confirmed to Efraín Zavarce of IVC Networks. Pérez was one of 14 players to receive a QO, with the deadline for a decision being 3pm Central today.

Pérez, 32, was once a highly-touted prospect with Texas, considered one of the top 100 youngsters in the sport by Baseball America five years running from 2009 to 2013. It was the last of those five years that he seemingly arrived at the major league level, posting a 3.62 ERA over 20 starts and 124 1/3 innings.

However, since then, he struggled to live up to his potential, continuing to get opportunities but serving as more of a back-end innings-eater type. In the eight seasons from 2014 to 2021, his ERA was never lower than 4.38, a stretch that included some modest free agent contracts, all for just a single year. For 2019, he signed with the Twins for $4MM, followed by joining the Red Sox for $6MM in 2020 and re-signing with Boston for $4.5MM in 2021.

That pattern followed into 2022, with Pérez returning to the Rangers on a one-year, $4MM deal. Since the club was handing out mega deals to the likes of Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, the Pérez move was largely left in the shadows. However, he emerged into the spotlight by having the best season of his career at the age of 31. He made 32 starts and tossed 196 1/3 innings while posting a 2.89 ERA.

His 20.6% strikeout rate was a career high but only by a hair, and it was still below league average. He mostly excelled by keeping the ball on the ground and in the park. His 51.4% ground ball rate was about eight points better than last year and his highest since 2016. His 6.5% HR/FB rate was almost 1o points better than last year and the best of his career in a full season’s work.

Advanced metrics are somewhat skeptical that 2.89 ERA was earned or is sustainable, since they all pegged him to be a bit worse. However, his 3.27 FIP, 3.59 xERA and 4.08 SIERA are still solid numbers and a great fit for a Rangers rotation that has lacked stability for quite some time.

As the 2022 season was winding down, reports emerged that there was mutual interest in a reunion between Pérez and the Rangers. They were apparently discussing multi-year deals recently, presumably with lower annual salaries, but couldn’t get anything done prior to last week’s QO offer deadline. The club decided he was worth this year’s $19.65MM QO price tag and extended it last week. That would have entitled them to draft pick compensation if the southpaw had signed elsewhere, but that’s a moot point now that he’s returned. It’s still possible a multi-year arrangement could be worked out, with that new deal replacing the QO. Such a scenario played out three years ago when Jose Abreu accepted a $17.8MM QO but then subsequently agreed to a three-year $50MM extension. But for now, Pérez has guaranteed himself a nice payday that’s almost five times what he made in 2021.

With Pérez now officially back for 2023, the Rangers’ rotation looks stronger than it did just a few days ago, as the club also acquired Jake Odorizzi in a trade with Atlanta last week. Those two should be slotted next to Jon Gray for next year. Dane Dunning could be a candidate for the back end if he recovers from hip surgery in time for the start of the season. That gives them a decent group but one that is lacking in front-of-the-rotation potential. The club seems to be aware of that, however, as general manager Chris Young is considering a run at some of the top free agent starting pitchers in order to add an ace into the mix.

Whether they can do that will likely depend upon the payroll, with Pérez now adding $19.65MM to the ledger. That puts them around $141MM in spending for next year, in the estimation of Roster Resource. That basically puts them even with last year’s Opening Day figure, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts, though Young has already indicated payroll will go up and they have been as high as $165MM in the past. If the rotation can move from a weakness to a strength next year, it could help the club see better results than their 68-94 record in 2022.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

Martin Perez Leaning Toward Accepting Qualifying Offer

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Players have until tomorrow afternoon to make decisions on their one-year, $19.65MM qualifying offers, and as things currently stand, Martin Perez is “likely” to accept his offer, tweets Jon Morosi of MLB.com. Morosi hedges by suggesting that a late change in Perez’s market could prompt him to change his thinking, but it’s still of some note to see where things stand for Perez at present, after several days of fielding interest from other teams.

Perez, 32 in April, returned to the Rangers on a one-year, $4MM contract this season and quickly became one of baseball’s best bargains. The former top prospect finally delivered the type of season the Rangers envisioned during his minor league days, finishing tenth in the Majors with 196 1/3 innings and posting a 2.89 ERA that ranked 14th in the Majors. Perez’s success was due in no small part to a career-high 77% strand rate and to a level of home-run prevention (0.50 HR/9) he hasn’t shown since an injury-shortened 2015 season. However, the Rangers saw enough to make that weighty one-year offer, ostensibly comfortable with the idea that even in the event of some regression, Perez can be a serviceable innings eater in an otherwise perilously thin rotation mix.

Accepting the one-year offer wouldn’t necessarily preclude an eventual multi-year deal with the Rangers. While Perez would be locked in at $19.65MM for the 2023 season (and ineligible to be traded, without his consent, prior to June 15), that agreement could be torn up in favor of a new multi-year extension. The two parties would be free to continue negotiating on a possible multi-year pact, and Texas has reportedly already put forth a two-year offer to Perez — presumably at a notably lighter annual value than the $19.65MM rate of the QO.

From a payroll vantage point, even if that $19.65MM salary is something of an “overpay” for Perez, the Rangers likely don’t mind. Roster Resource’s Jason Martinez projects them for a payroll just shy of $122MM at the moment, so Perez would take them to about $141.5MM. Texas has run its payroll as high as $174MM, back in 2017, and that was before they had a brand new ballpark from which to draw revenue. GM Chris Young has said that payroll is expected to rise over its 2022 levels, when the Rangers’ $142MM Opening Day payroll is right in the vicinity where they’d be in the event of Perez accepting the QO.

If he does indeed accept, Perez would join Jon Gray, Dane Dunning and newly acquired Jake Odorizzi as options in the rotation. Texas is widely expected to pursue high-end starting pitching in free agency, having already been linked to the likes of Jacob deGrom, Carlos Rodon and NPB star Kodai Senga, who is available (sans posting fee) as a true international free agent this winter.

Rangers Interested In Top Free Agent Starting Pitchers

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At the GM Meetings in Las Vegas, Rangers general manager Chris Young recently spoke with the media, including Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News, and said the club is going to explore all areas of the starting pitching market. Jon Heyman of the New York Post mentions some discussions between the Rangers and Jacob deGrom, while Jon Morosi of MLB Network also mentions deGrom, in addition to Carlos Rodon and Kodai Senga.

It’s hardly a surprise that the rotation will be a focus going forward, given that it was an obvious weakness in 2022. Texas starters posted a collective 4.63 ERA this year, placing them 25th in the majors in that regard. They got some decent work from Jon Gray and a career year from veteran Martin Perez, though Perez has now reached free agency and deprived the already-weak rotation of its strongest performer. There’s reportedly mutual interest in a reunion, with he and the club reportedly discussing multi-year pacts. But nothing has been finalized and he has now officially received a $19.65MM qualifying offer.

The club has already made one move to fortify the starting corps, acquiring Jake Odorizzi from Atlanta yesterday. Odorizzi hasn’t been great over the past three years, but he seems plenty capable of taking the ball and providing some decent innings. He had a 4.21 ERA in 2021 and a 4.40 mark in 2022 but got over 100 innings in each of those seasons and 143 in each year from 2014 to 2019.

If the Rangers and Perez can come to an agreement, he would form a solid three-headed veteran core with Gray and Odorizzi. The rotation would have a solid base but would be lacking a true ace. Perez posted a 2.89 ERA in 2022 but was at 4.38 or above in each of the previous eight seasons. Even if he has unlocked a pitch mix that leads to better results, maintaining a 6.5% HR/FB rate will be tough to do and some regression could still be in the cards. Gray dealt with some injuries this year but still made 24 starts and posted a 3.96 ERA with rate stats fairly close to his career marks. Dane Dunning could also be a factor at the back end of the rotation after he put up a 4.46 ERA over 29 starts this year. His health is a bit uncertain after his season was ended by arthroscopic hip surgery, but he can be an option if he’s healthy.

It seems the Rangers are willing to consider another bold strike to complement that group of serviceable pitchers. Last year, they showed they’re not afraid of such moves, giving Corey Seager $325MM over ten years and Marcus Semien $175MM over seven years. This year, it’s possible the big strike comes for an ace to lead the starting staff. That could come in the form a deal for Rodon, whom the club has already been connected to, with deGrom and Senga also being considered.

deGrom, 35 in June, certainly fits the bill of an ace, as he’s arguably the best pitcher alive when healthy. That health hasn’t always been present, especially lately, with deGrom missing over a year from July of 2021 to August of 2022. However, after his return, he showed that he can still be his dominant self, making 11 starts and throwing 64 1/3 innings. His 3.08 ERA was two full runs above what he did prior to his injury shutdown in 2021, but the peripherals were still very similar. His 42.7% strikeout rate and 3.3% walk rate were both still absurdly good and point to more elite results going forward. Given his health concerns and age, it’s possible he will be looking at short-term offers with his annual salaries. MLBTR’s Top 50 Free Agents list dropped yesterday with a prediction of $135MM over three years, which is $45MM per year.

That would certainly be one way for the club to go. Another would be a more traditional contract of greater length but less money per year. MLBTR projected a higher guarantee for Rodon at $140MM, though over a five-year term that would be significantly less on an annual basis, $28MM per year. Senga will likely require even less, predicted for $75 over five years, or $15MM per season. Of course, that would also come with its own kind of risk, given that Senga’s unproven against MLB hitters and not all NPB aces have found similar success after crossing the Pacific.

When talking about such figures, it’s worth taking a look at the club’s payroll situation. Roster Resource currently pegs the Rangers’ 2023 outlay at $122MM. Last year’s Opening Day figure was $142MM, per Cot’s Baseball Contracts, meaning they’re only about $20MM away. If Perez eventually accepts the QO, they’re suddenly even. However, Young has already spoken about how payroll is going to go up and they have been as high as $165MM in previous seasons. Ultimately, exactly how much they have to spend will play a factor in how they address the rotation. If they have, say, $45MM to work with, putting all those eggs into the deGrom basket would be a huge upgrade but wouldn’t leave anything left to address the outfield or bullpen. Regardless of the final number, it will be interesting to see how it plays out as the club looks to gain some serious ground in a competitive AL West.

Rays Hire Jon Daniels As Senior Advisor For Baseball Operations

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The Rays announced to reporters, including Chelsea Janes of the Washington Post, that they have hired Jon Daniels as senior advisor for baseball operations. Daniels had spent many years with the Rangers until he was recently fired as president of baseball operations.

Daniels, 45, spent 17 years running the baseball operations in Texas, getting hired as general manager in 2005 and promoted to the POBO role in 2013. The Rangers had their best run of success with Daniels at the helm, as they made the playoffs in five out of seven seasons from 2010 to 2016, including trips to the World Series in the first two of those years. Since that time, however, the club has entered a rebuilding period that has continued to linger. They fell to 78-84 in 2017 and just endured their sixth straight losing season in 2022, with Daniels getting fired in August.

Despite the poor results in recent seasons, the Rays will bring Daniels into their front office mix. Said front office is headed by Erik Neander, president of baseball operations, followed by Peter Bendix, senior vice president baseball operations and general manager. The exact level of involvement they expect from Daniels is unclear, though Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times relays that Daniels will focus on “supporting baseball ops senior leadership while utilizing his extensive experience in the industry to help further inform decision-making.”

In addition to the hiring of Daniels, the Rays also announced several promotions and/or title changes, with Topkin giving a rundown on Twitter (link one, two and three).

Rangers Outright Jesus Tinoco

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The Rangers announced they’ve outrighted pitcher Jesus Tinoco to Triple-A Round Rock. Following that and a bundle of other moves involving the Rangers, their 40-man roster now sits at 34.

Tinoco, 27, tossed 20 2/3 innings of 2.18 ERA ball in 2022 across two stints in the big leagues with the Rangers. On the surface, those are excellent numbers but Tinoco had an opponent’s BABIP of just .189, and a LOB rate of 89.1%, suggesting there was a fair bit of regression due for the Venezuelan. He also threw 44 innings out of the bullpen at Triple-A, striking out batters 28.5% of the time and walking 9.5% of them on the way to a 3.27 ERA.

Tinoco was originally signed by the Blue Jays back in 2011. He was traded to the Rockies as part of the Troy Tulowitzki deal in 2015, and wound up making his major league debut in 2019 there. That was the start of a period of bouncing around the league a bit, as the Rockies would deal him to the Marlins in August of 2020, only to claim him back just a few weeks later. He was released by the Rockies at the end of the 2021 season, and latched on with the Rangers. All told, Tinoco has pitched to a 4.05 ERA across 66 2/3 innings in the big leagues.

Giants Claim Meibrys Viloria, Drew Strotman

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The Giants announced Thursday that they’ve claimed catcher Meibrys Viloria and right-hander Drew Strotman off waivers from the Rangers. The team also reinstated Sam Delaplane, Anthony DeSclafani, Mauricio Llovera, Sam Long, Gregory Santos, Donovan Walton, Colton Welker and Alex Wood from the 60-day injured list. San Francisco’s 40-man roster is now at capacity.

Viloria, 25, appeared in 26 games with the Rangers in 2022 and, in 75 plate appearances, logged a .159/.280/.270 batting line. That’s similar to the output he managed across three seasons and mostly brief stints with the Royals from 2018-20. All in all, Viloria is a career .201/.270/.283 hitter in 276 Major League plate appearances.

That said, the lefty-swinging backstop has a far more appealing .257/.395/.412 slash in 108 Triple-A games. He’s also touted as a plus defensive backstop, boasting a 34% caught-stealing rate between the big leagues and the minors, and drawing plus reviews for his framing. He’ll give the Giants, who entered the offseason lacking in catching depth behind Joey Bart, another option on the 40-man roster, joining backup Austin Wynns and fellow recent waiver claim Dom Nunez.

Strotman’s stint in the Rangers organization will prove brief. Texas claimed him off waivers from the Twins on Sept. 19 and tried to pass him through waivers themselves not two months later. The now-26-year-old Strotman went from Tampa Bay to Minnesota (alongside Joe Ryan) in the 2021 deadline deal that sent Nelson Cruz to the Rays.

Strotman had Tommy John surgery in 2018, and while his velocity has generally recovered, that surgery and the ongoing command issues created some some concerns that he may have to move from a starting role to the bullpen. The Twins tried that approach in 2022, surely hoping that Strotman’s fastball and cutter would play up in shorter stints. It didn’t out, however, as the 2017 fourth-rounder pitched to a grisly 6.44 ERA with a career-worst 13.8% walk rate in 50 1/3 innings of bullpen work with Triple-A St. Paul this season. Strotman’s 24.2% strikeout rate and 51.1% grounder rate were both solid but not strong enough to offset the persistent location issues.

Things didn’t get much better with the Rangers. Strotman tossed 2 1/3 innings with their Triple-A club over the final week-plus of the season, allowing just one run and recording five punchouts. Sharp as those numbers were in that small time, he also walked three of the 14 hitters he faced, bringing his total to 36 walks (plus six hit batters) through just 254 batters faced in 2022 (14.2% walk rate).

Strotman has a minor league option left and was at one point a prospect of some note, so the Giants will see if they can get him on track. They’ve had plenty of success in coaxing new levels of performance out of pitchers in recent seasons, but Strotman is little more than a project at this point and shouldn’t be seen as a lock to survive the winter on the 40-man roster (nor should Viloria, for that matter).

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