As the Rangers prepare for the heart of the offseason shopping season and the bazaar known as the Winter Meetings in early December, we take a look around the roster at where they are and where they might be going.
Starting pitcher
Current rotation: RHP Jacob deGrom. P Jon Gray, LHP Martín Pérez, RHP Jake Odorizzi, RHP Dane Dunning
Other options: RHP Glenn Otto, LHP Cole Ragans, RHP Spencer Howard
What happened in 2022: In Jon Gray and Martín Pérez, the Rangers made a couple of solid free agent adds. Though Gray battled some injuries, the Rangers were a winning team (30-26) in the duo’s starts. They combined for a 3.31 ERA. The problem was, literally, everybody else. The Rangers were counting on growth from a handful of young starters, most notably Dane Dunning, and some guys in the upper reaches of the minor league system. It did not happen. Dunning regressed somewhat and then suffered a hip injury that required surgery and makes his readiness for the start of the 2023 season uncertain.
Nobody else stepped forward notably, though Cole Ragans’ MLB debut after years of injury was uplifting. RHP Cole Winn, the most advanced pitcher in the minors, went backwards. Spencer Howard, acquired from Philadelphia, all but pitched himself out of the plans.
Too often the Rangers beat themselves. Starters allowed 362 free runners on walks and hit batsmen, tied for the second highest total in the league. They could not afford such charity. The lack of growth from the starting rotation was a significant part of why the Rangers didn’t make more improvement over 2021.
By the numbers: 10 – total starts made by pitchers exclusively developed in the Rangers system. Cole Ragans made nine of them and Brett Martin, as the opener, made one. Conversely, AL West, and eventual World Series champs, Houston had 119 such starts. It serves to underscore the vast gap that exists in the Rangers’ pitching development and that of contenders.
Surveying the market: GM Chris Young came, surveyed and conquered the early market. With a ton of work to do, the Rangers went into the winter meetings having added the biggest name on the market, deGrom for a $185 million over five years, re-signed Martín Pérez and grabbed Jake Odorizzi in a gift of a deal from Atlanta. But there is still work to do.
The remining market is headed by Carlos Rodón, though it seems unlikely the Rangers would pay more than $30 million a year for two different pitchers. The next tier is where Chris Bassitt, Nathan Eovaldi, Jameson Taillon and Michael Wacha are among the biggest names. And there is interest in Japanese import Kodai Senga, who like deGrom throws in the upper 90s, but also has a devastating forkball. After signing deGrom Friday, Chris Young said the club will still look to improve the starting pitching but did not give any indication if the deGrom signing created any financial limitations.
And the Rangers could try to use some of their minor league inventory to peel off a starter like Pablo Lopez of the Marlins or German Marquez of Colorado.
On the farm: The Rangers believe they are on the lip of a wave of homegrown frontline starters. RHP Owen White, 23, zoomed to the top of the pitching prospect list with a strong first half that saw him move to Double-A Frisco, but didn’t pitch for two months between July and the end of the regular season. White had 110 strikeouts in 86 innings, an average of 11.5 per nine innings. He’s got everything going for him – if he can stay healthy. The 2018 second-rounder has pitched a total of 144 professional innings – and that includes Fall League and postseason work. He has supplanted RHP Jack Leiter, the No. 2 overall pick in 2021, at the top of the minor league system. Leiter, challenged by going to Double-A straight from college, struggled with command in his first season. The Rangers also used the No. 3 overall pick in 2022 on RHP Kumar Rocker.
The outlook: It’s not an exaggeration to say the entire success of the offseason depends on how the Rangers address this. It’s also not an exaggeration to say the club has done some serious heavy lifting in the first half of the winter. If deGrom stays healthy, the Rangers have a true ace at the top of the rotation and everything falls more in line after that.
If deGrom does need some periodic breaks, guys like Dunning, Otto and Ragans fit much better as depth options than as Nos. 3-4-5 starters.
The return of veteran pitching coach Mike Maddux can’t be overlooked. The Rangers had an enormous workload to undertake this winter where the rotation was involved. They’ve done significant work there.
Rangers’ position series
C/DH: Jonah Heim/Mitch Garver
1B: Nathaniel Lowe
2B: Marcus Semien
SS: Corey Seager
3B: Josh Jung
LF: Bubba Thompson
CF: Leody Taveras
RF: Adolis García
More coming soon...
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