Here’s the latest on the Rangers’ progress this offseason, via ESPN’s Jerry Crasnick (all Twitter links).
- The Rangers have asked the White Sox about Jose Quintana, Crasnick writes. The Rangers likely won’t be significant bidders for Quintana, however, unless the White Sox’ price comes down. The two teams discussed Quintana at the trade deadline during the season, and the White Sox asked for Jurickson Profar plus “a lot more.” The Rangers thought that price was too high. There would, of course, be little reason for the White Sox not to ask for a lot in return for Quintana, who is controllable for the next four seasons. While it’s not surprising that the White Sox wanted more than Profar in exchange for Quintana, the basic framework of the deal makes sense — the Rangers reportedly targeted another controllable starter, Joe Ross, when the Nationals asked about Profar.
- The Rangers are still pursuing potential trades for starting pitchers, Crasnick writes. The Rangers’ rotation is strong at the top with Cole Hamels and Yu Darvish, and Martin Perez makes a decent third option. But they’re weak after that, with wild-card new signee Andrew Cashner topping a list of possible fourth and fifth starters.
- The Rangers also continue to linger on the periphery of Edwin Encarnacion’s market. Encarnacion’s agent said earlier today that several teams had made offers to Encarnacion of three or four years, although it’s unclear if the Rangers are one of those teams. GM Jon Daniels has said that it’s “highly unlikely” the Rangers will sign Encarnacion, despite a clear opening for a bat to play first base and/or DH.
Ezlove
I think the Rangers need to save their money so they can resign Lucroy and Darvish next offseason, and maybe trade for A controllable starter to fill the mid to bottom of the rotation further
dbacksrs
Agree. The AL West is becoming a pretty good division with the recent emergences of the Astros and the M’s, and you know the Angels will come back eventually.
lesterdnightfly
Agree with the first part, but for the Angels, competing “eventually” will probably happen several years from now.
ryanw-2
People were saying the same thing after their miserable 2013 season and then the next season they had the best record in the Majors.
dbacksrs
If their rotation can get healthy (and stay healthy) I can see them doing well again. Maybe not in 2017 or even 2018, but they will eventually come back. The A’s on the other hand..
lesterdnightfly
Sure, one can dream that the Angels will someday compete. But look at the difference between that roster and the AAAA roster they are cobbling together this year.
That, and the competition in the AL West is much greater now.
bruinsfan94 2
Angels have a ton of injury risk, and while some big contracts are coming off the books soon ( Weaver,Wison) they have a huge albatross, tons of money tied up on two players, one of the worst farm systems in baseball, and they really lack the talent on the MLB team that can be traded for quality prospects. Thats not a pretty roster with that payroll.
tim815
Their system can be upgraded. If management decides to go that way.
cuscus85
They don’t have huge money tied to two players. Angels payroll will be roughly $30 million dollars south of the salary cap this season.
As of now, they only have $108 (including arbitration) committed if they decline Nolasco and Street’s options. And the cap will be increasing next season.
There’s plenty of talent to trade away for prospects but the team isn’t in a full rebuild. Trout, Calhoun, Escobar, Simmons, Bedrosian, Skaggs, Shoemaker, Richards and Cron could all net prospects. It’s not Eppler’s strategy at this point.
vtadave
Angels need to tank. I’m assuming Arte will never let Preller trade Trout, but they should certainly be open to dealing pretty much anyone else.
Kole Calhoun has three years of team control and could fetch a nice piece or two. Given he’s 29, it may be prudent to deal him now.
Yunel Escobar is 34 and nothing special, but he did hit .300 in each of the last couple years and perhaps a team will find value in that. Maybe Boston? Marte and/or Cowart can handle 3B.
Huston Street is of no use, but given his $9 million salary, knee, and 2016 performance, the Angels might not get much here. Still, if he’s healthy in March, the Angels should be open to dealing him.
I’d be open to dealing any of the starting pitching, but guys like Skaggs, Richards, and Shoemaker probably are all July trade candidates given the need for each to prove they are healthy and effective.
RickyAdams79
The angels r paying roughly 60-65 million for Pinole, Hamilton and trout. And in 2018 trout salary goes from like 18 mill to 30+ million with raises yearly. Heavily backloaded and Thayer gonna regret that bout 2018-20
GeoKaplan
If Preller traded Trout (or any other Angel) he’d be guilty of tampering, since he’s the GM of the Padres.
GeoKaplan
If I interpret what you were trying to write, it is doubtful the Angels would “regret” Trout’s salary when we see the nutso salaries Harper and Machado will command as free agents.
cuscus85
Trout is the best player in baseball with an extremely team friendly contract. They won’t regret a thing.
Plus in 2018, payroll will only be $108 million if they decline Nolasco and Street Options. That’s plenty of room to work under the roughly $190 million luxury tax.
RickyAdams79
19 mill this year, then 33 million a year is team friendly?
GeoKaplan
It will be so when the contracts for Machado and Harper are signed. Both are highly-productive, but still lesser, players. Comparatively speaking, Trout will be underpaid by then.
Besides which, if you value 1 WAR as worth $8M, Trout has already offset the total contract at this point. The entire deal through 2020 season is worth $144.5M, and he’s posted 20 WAR over the past two seasons alone. Even half the annual productivity for future years is enough to cover his salary.
Trout is on a completely different plane from most other players. This isn’t the same as wondering if Andrus will provide sufficient value to justify his deal. Trout’s already done that, with four more seasons left on his contract.
gammaraze
So are you saying that $181M over 4 years isn’t huge money? That’s the combined salary of Pujols and Trout for the next 4 years. I’m sorry, but you’re just wrong, no other way to put it.
GeoKaplan
No, you’re misinformed. The back end of Pujols’ contract is nasty, but Trout continues to outperform his deal. It’s “huge money” only when it’s a Vernon Wells-type deal and there is zero production coming back to the team.
Return on the dollar continues to be overwhelmingly positive for Trout, and will look like a bargain once Harper and Machado sign their free agent deals. High cost for premium talent is the way the game works. And some talent is more premium than others.
Joe Shlabotnik
Their pitching is older, they have the worst farm system in baseball, and their big league positional talent is 4 players deep.
herecomethephillies2018
What is this salary cap you speak of…
pullhitter445
The Mariners and angels are sub par teams. Angels are so financially screwed and have an atrocious farm system. Mariners are stuck in mediocrity. Texas needs a bullpen and let’s see if the Astros can deliver on there potential. A lot of issues with each of those teams in a bad al west.
Phil Merkel
Rangers have a fine bullpen. Don’t know where you get your information from.
jdgoat
They overachieved last year so they could easily come back to earth
RickyAdams79
Yea. Diekman, dyson, Barnett, bush, Jeffers is pretty good bullpen
jakeperrow
Mariners are going to win the division this year hands down
toby312
They could trade for Quintana and with the money they save on his way below market value contract for next four years still sign those 2 to extensions
RickyAdams79
White sox want profar and prospects! We don’t have prospects. We gave them up for hamels, lucroy and beltran
Phil Merkel
Sorry, Ricky, but that’s not true.
RickyAdams79
Again I’d like to know who
RickyAdams79
Reports r he’s gonna ask 30 mill a year. As bad as we need pitching I’d pass on that price. He maybe a true #1, but he’s not kershaw, sale, mad bum,
kenster84
That’s not for 4 years
ASapsFables
Which might be quite the bargain come 2021. lol
RickyAdams79
What’s not for 4 yrs
alexgordonbeckham
Hard pass on the Rangers system unless they would include Mazara in a deal for Q. Three years of Profar does not do anything for a rebuild.
sss847
amen. the prospects traded for lucroy would have worked well in a Q package, but now they don’t really have anything that makes sense from a quality standpoint
RickyAdams79
Not really. We have 1 prospect in top 100. We have everything we had for cole, lucroy, and beltran
Phil Merkel
Again, I respectfully disagree
RickyAdams79
Then, please tell me What do u think we have other than mendez
madmanTX
Harder pass on Quintana if it means gutting what is left of the Rangers farm system. If they wouldn’t do it to get Sale…
alexgordonbeckham
I should have worded my original comment differently. Hard pass on the Rangers system. If Mazara is off the table, then they have nothing. Profar does nothing for the Sox and I don’t want Gallo.
Steven P.
I seriously do not understand the Profar love. He has been a replacement level player the past three seasons and is only under control for three more years
I would not be interested in him at all
alexgordonbeckham
Agreed 100%.
Travis’ Wood
I agree completely. Why any of these rebuilding teams want Profar is beyond me. He will be a free agent before Quintana…
wdwyer
It’s because he is young and has a lot of upside
IACub
He didn’t even play two of the past three years, plus he is still pretty young and was a highly- regarded prospect.
alexgordonbeckham
No one is really disputing that. Just that it doesn’t make much sense for a rebuilding team not looking to compete for 3+ years from now. He would probably be a good option for the Dodgers at second since there is no room for him to get every day at bats in Texas.
madmanTX
That’s why you’re not a GM
RickyAdams79
The first year was rc year, and last 2 years he was out with shoulder injury. So I doubt he was replacement level. But he’s 22 years old, can play almost any position, and was #1 prospect what just 3 years ago. As a ranger fan I have way more love for profar than gallo
baseball lover
I believe they want Profar for the chance he lives up to past expectations, but he is the second piece behind Mazara, Odor and even Gallo
lesterdnightfly
Not much demand for Joey Gallo. Take Ernest and Julio; they’re much more productive.
baseball lover
I’m not giving up on Gallo yet, he has not really had a chance to play regularly and how they used him last year was stupid.
His stock could be down for sure, but he is only 23 and if he can hit 40 HR consistently he will have a job for many years
RickyAdams79
He’s not gonna hit 30 a year. He’s gonna have like a .220 batting average. Mark Reynolds type player. Like Davis and Reggie but even lower batting average
CubsFanForLife
I don’t want to give up on Gallo either, but the Rangers are adamant in that they’re not going to play him. That K rate took a turn for the worse last season, but this is potentially Chris Davis – 40 HR power with a 220 avg. For Gallo’s sake, I hope he gets traded somewhere like San Diego… where there’s an actual place for him to play.
GeoKaplan
LesterDNightfly–hello, Baton Rouge.
The Gallo line was great
lesterdnightfly
“I wait all night for comments like these…..”
Thanks.
MLBTR is the new WJAZ. From the foot of Mt. Belzoni……
Steven P.
Gallo’s value is way down after awful performances at the mlb level
Power does not matter if you can’t make contact
baseball lover
I disagree, plenty of examples in league now
He can hit 250 and that is average in majors
He will always strikeout a lot but so do others
He might not be a fit for Banny ball is the issue
RickyAdams79
And he’s not gonna hit .250, more like .200-.220
chesteraarthur
He hasn’t hit 250 since double A. You really think he’s gonna be a 250 hitter against MLB pitching? I guess it’s possible if he stops striking out 40% of the time, but i wouldn’t bet on it.
antonio bananas
the problem is a high k rate is one of the strongest correlations to poor MLB performance. 40% is insanely high. basically looking at a post achilles injury Ryan Howard type of slash.
ImDaBaron
Rangers are going to be waiting a long time if they expect Qs price to go down
madmanTX
I doubt the Rangers are waiting on the White Sox. They just kicked the tires and walked away.
baseball lover
I agree with this. You don’t know unless you ask
takeyourbase
He’ll pitch in Chicago again in ’17.
socalblake
Good thing they didn’t sign Bautista. That would’ve been awkward if Odor and his lockers were adjacent.
madmanTX
Awkward for Bautista maybe.
socalblake
Odor would be telling him: go clean ma cleats.
lesterdnightfly
Maybe clean cleats would help Odor have a respectable OBP and play a little defense.
RickyAdams79
Yes sir. Bring that avg up bout 15-20 points and not be worst 2nd base defender and he’d be a stud
bluejaysfan
Agree with RickyAdams. If he could get rid of his small man syndrome that would help too. Bautista slide was BUSH, but he barely touched the hobbit. Odor could be top 3 second baseman in the league with some leadership. Dude is good
gammaraze
Not sure how having clean cleats would help with taking walks…
baseball lover
His agent asked and was told thanks but no thanks
Lol
RickyAdams79
Oriole’s told him something.
jochilz
You can tell from the way Pro plays he has special abilities. What about Odor in a package? Just speculating, we have to clear a spot either way
baseball lover
The last I heard the Sox wanted either Odor or Mazara, Profar and 2-3 more prospects
jochilz
That’s steep, I’d be willing to say put a Odor and Gallo package with some throw ins but we can’t lose all that talent and for sure not both Odor and Pro
Overbrook
Rangers don’t have the prospects for Quintana. If Whitesox want Profar as centerpiece they need their head examined;…and the Rangers need 2 shrinks if they wouldn’t accept it.
punchandjudy
Dear Rangers,
You can have Brandon McCarthy or Scott Kazmir for almost nothing–or, heck, let’s just say nothing–in return.
Sincerely,
Dodger Fan
baseball lover
Lol
We have plenty of those types around now at a cheaper price
asuchrisc
Rangers have gutted their farm system with trades over the last 3-4 years. Look at the players they gave up with nothing to show for it. If they do trade for Quintana it’ll finish off what was already a depleated minor league system. If they do that, they’ll be living off free agency or end up in a rebuilding phase sooner rather than later IMO.
RickyAdams79
Nothing to show? IMO, we did overpay! But I wouldn’t call hamels, lucroy, diekman, Jeffress nothing. We’re behind astros and mariners in standings without hamels
bluejaysfan
Once again I agree RickyAdams. Those are 4 legit players that most teams would be happy inserting into their lineups. Texas is still the team to beat in the West. I think they are right there with Boston, Cleveland and Houston
Phil Merkel
Their farm system is not gutted…good grief!
jdgoat
How? Their top guys have huge question marks like Gallo and Profar. Their stock has both fallen tremendously. Beyond that, there’s not much at all
RickyAdams79
for guys like sale, Quintana, and archer top 100 prospects near major league ready r what r gonna be needed. We only have 1 top 100…yohander Mendez. And after him only 2-3 guys are triple a or above
astros_fan_84
I think the Rangers should go all in while they can, then rebuild.
siliconmessiah
I find it interesting that people are saying the Sox won’t get what they want for Q which is what we heard them say about Sale. Well, guess what? They got a haul for Sale and they will for Jose as well OR they just will hold onto him. No need to trade him just ’cause. Get all the value possible. I’m sorry but to trade him for whatever just because you won’t compete is stupid and I hope they don’t do that.
GeoKaplan
That’s the essential truth.
Quintana is very affordably signed, so there is no financial urgency to trade him. The market will come to the White Sox. My guess is that he’ll be in a different uni by the end of 2017, though he may not be traded until the deadline. The White Sox will do very well at that time.