The Rangers announced that they have signed left-hander Patrick Corbin to a one-year major league deal. The ISE Baseball client’s exact guarantee isn’t publicly known but Jon Heyman of The New York Post reports that it will be a slightly more than $1MM, with incentives worth around a million as well. Righty Jon Gray was transferred to the 60-day injured list as the corresponding move.
For the Rangers, this would appear to be a quantity-over-quality move. Corbin’s past few years haven’t been good on a rate basis, but he has been an effective innings-eater for the Nationals. The southpaw signed a six-year, $140MM deal with Washington going into 2019. He had just wrapped up a stellar season for the 2018 Diamondbacks, tossing 200 innings with a 3.15 earned run average. While his strikeout rate had previously hovered around 20%, he punched out 30.8% of opponents that year.
His first year as a Nat could hardly have gone much better. He logged 202 innings over 33 starts in the regular season with a 3.25 ERA, 28.5% strikeout rate, 8.4% walk rate and 49.5% ground ball rate. He logged another 23 1/3 innings in the postseason as the Nats charged all the way to the World Series and won it all for the first time in franchise history.
But his results declined in 2020 and never really recovered. His strikeout rate fell to 20.3% that year and his ERA climbed to 4.66. In the four full seasons since then, he has a combined 5.71 ERA, 17.7% strikeout rate and 7.3% walk rate. He didn’t post an ERA below 5.20 in any of those four campaigns.
But as alluded to earlier, he at least compiled bulk innings for the Nats. He has actually been about as reliable as a pitcher can be over the past decade. He missed the 2014 season due to Tommy John surgery. He was activated in July of 2015 and tossed 85 innings that year. The Snakes used him as a swingman in 2016, with Corbin logging 155 2/3 innings that year over 24 starts and 12 relief appearances. Since then, he has made at least 31 starts and logged at least 171 innings in every full season, in addition to making 11 starts in the shortened 2020 season. Any pitcher can get hurt at any time, but it’s hard to find a better track record of health in today’s game. From 2016 to 2024, Corbin’s 1,492 innings are second in baseball behind Aaron Nola.
A dependable back-end starter has some understandable appeal to the Rangers. The aforementioned Gray suffered a wrist fracture and is going to be out for a quite a while. Today’s transfer to the 60-day IL means a return in late May is the best-case scenario. Cody Bradford is shut down with some elbow soreness and faced an uncertain path back to health.
They could still have a competent rotation without those two, though there are questions with each candidate. Nathan Eovaldi has been largely healthy for the past few years but has two Tommy John surgeries on his track record and is now 35 years old. Jacob deGrom has missed most of the past two seasons due to Tommy John surgery and had plenty of issues before that as well. He hasn’t gone past 92 innings in a season since 2019 and turns 37 in June. Tyler Mahle also missed most of the past two seasons due to Tommy John surgery and has been battling forearm soreness in camp.
Prospect Kumar Rocker is a candidate to step up and take a job but he also missed most of the past two years due to his own TJS. Jack Leiter is impressing in camp but control still seems to be an issue, as it has been throughout his minor league career. Dane Dunning is coming off a rough year, as is non-roster invitee Adrian Houser.
A guy like Corbin taking the ball with regularity could be useful for a group like that with so many question marks. It’s also possible that he’s been better in recent years than it would appear. As mentioned, he has a 5.71 ERA over the past four years. However, his .328 batting average on balls in play and 67.4% strand rate were both on the unlucky side. His 4.99 FIP and 4.60 SIERA in that span suggest his ERA might have been inflated by about a full run. The Nationals had a team-wide -82 Defensive Runs Saved and -96 Outs Above Average during that four-year span, perhaps explaining some of the bad luck and extra runs crossing the plate.
If Corbin can take the ball and provide half-decent innings, that could be useful to the Rangers, especially at this price point. They are clearly trying to avoid the competitive balance tax in 2025, which has mostly limited them to fairly modest dealings this offseason. RosterResource projects their CBT number at $235MM, only about $6MM below this year’s $241MM base threshold of the tax. Corbin’s salary won’t move that very much, since he’s barely making more than the $760K league minimum.
Presumably, Corbin won’t be an option for the Rangers right away. He’ll need a few weeks to get himself into game shape, so he’ll likely start the season on the injured list, or perhaps he will consent to a brief optional assignment to start the year. President of baseball operations Chris Young tells Kennedi Landry of MLB.com that Corbin’s wife is due to have a baby in the next 24 to 48 hours, so he won’t even be joining the club in Arizona. He will instead join the club in Texas after they break camp.
Until Corbin is ready, the Rangers will likely give Rocker and Leiter some legit chances at locking down jobs. If those don’t work or other injury situations pop up, Corbin will slot into the rotation mix and ideally stabilize things.
Photos courtesy of Kamil Krzaczynski and Geoff Burke of Imagn Images.
If anything, he’s gotta be the most durable SP over the last 10 years
Will Patrick Corbin take Jacob DeGrom under his wings and show him the ropes?
“Here’s the trick Jacob, if you pitch horribly then you get hurt less. Maybe try pitching worse than a position player in a blowout.”
This signing is probably insurance for WHEN not if DeGrom goes on the IL (soon to be the RL, in honor of Rendon).
CORBIN: “Jerk off with your glove hand, Jacob”
DEGROM: “I’ve tried, but it slips and I accidentally punch my self in the face, Pat”
So, he’s been both reliably poor and poorly reliable.
He’s like Derek Lowe with the Braves. If you need him to go out there and give up 5 runs, he’s got you. If you need him to go out there and only give up 3, he will give you 5.
Like a less likable Kyle Gibson.
He had a bad 2020, but you can blame COVID year. He got worse in 2021 immediately after foreign substances were banned.
Had a great first few starts, and his first start after sticky stuff was banned, he gave up 10 runs in 1+ Innings against Arizona and was never the same after that.
@zim exactly. His slider was his bread and butter. Dropping 200 rpm and his extension went from high 5 almost 7. So he was releasing it later with less spin.
His changeup was always dump but without the slider (which was one of the best pitches on the league in 2019), he was left with zero plus pitches.
More extension is usually a good thing, making a pitch seem faster to the batter, but with less break and spin the greater “perceived velo” doesn’t really help
@Pronklington Yeah you said it man
How are Spencer Turnbull and Kyle Gibson still unemployed?
Lance Lynn
Lynn is an entitled manchild and appears to be a clubhouse cancer. He disrespects the game and his opponents with his foul mannerisms and antics.
Spencer Turnbull has “clubhouse issues” as well., THAT is why he is still unsigned.
Oooh tell me more!
The Rangers sure have an affinity for mediocre veteran starting pitchers on short term deals.
Yeah, but they signed __Patrick Corbin__.
Corbin attaining mediocrity at this point in his career would be an improvement on par with Garrett Crochet’s 2024 season. Corbin’s the guy with a 5.71 ERA since 2021 and a negative 4.0 bWAR.
If you want to add one more pitcher on the cheap and aim for mediocrity as opposed to, say, signing the pitcher who might be more likely than any other to knock you out of a close postseason race if he pitches to form, you find someone like Griffin Canning, who foundered with a team with an inept FO, and try knocking 1/3 of an ER from his stat line by changing his pitch mix. Or just grit your teeth and pay whatever Lance Lynn seems to be looking for, or add Spencer Turnbull on an incentive-laden deal.
A last minute pickup of Corbin, though? This is very poor planning assuming they actually intend to use him even as something like Plan G when guys such as Chris Flexen were available last month on a minor league deal.
Watch bochy work, he is going to come back to form
This probably drives Trevor Bauer crazy hearing this. Probably made him choke…
Bauer has a guaranteed contract in Japan. It’s not like he’s broke or playing in an indie beer league somewhere
Rosx – These people are concerned with the facts, just their weird cult-like Bauer agenda.
I’ll play for independent beer.
Is he still represented by his girlfriend the agent?
Do we need to ask if she likes things rough?
For all those years when Jose Canseco said the league blackballed him before and after his time with the rays we all thought he was lying… anyone remember the Jose Canseco treatment? You gotta pick Prime Jose Canseco or Prime Trevor Bauer who you taking auyuckuckuck
Except after the Rays traded Canseco to the Yankees and finished out the 2000 season he would sign with the Angels and be released, and still play 76 games with the White Sox in 2001. At age 37 would go to spring training with the Expos, get cut, sign back with the White Sox and retire after 18 games in AAA. That’s not really “blacklisting” as even though he didn’t get guaranteed deals he still got signed by 3 different organizations (one of them twice)
That’s why I said Jose Canseco said and we all thought he was lying.
Guessing everyone would rather have canseco
I don’t remember the treatment just saw him alluding to it in a documentary about him. I didn’t see much of him play except for on ESPNCLASSIC
@RSex How do you remember these arcane details from 25 years ago ? Of all the data and important details of life we must retain just to survive in modern life I am amazed at what mundane details people can still keep in their brains. (Not trying to be snarky, truly amazed).
It is weird what we retain. I can remember things from my first day of kindergarten to a random comment from the 90’s, but don’t remember what this article was about now. I’m kidding. I’m fully aware that I’m on pornhub
At least Canseco’s antics were funny.
… someone.
If The other AL West Teams are cheering. The Rangers must really fell they have an innings problem. Their pitching staff is one of the most fragile in all of baseball, except for the Yankees. This signing is also an indictment on Rocker and Leiter. The Rangers are obviously projecting that Kumar and Leiter aren’t ready for the big leagues just yet.
How did Cashman not pull this off? $1 million is practically free by MLB standards and they need the depth. You know at some point Carlos Rodon will get into a fight with a banana peel and lose…
Takes two to tango. One team has an easier path to a starter job and the other you’re competing against NRIs for a job with a good chance of getting cut when an injured player comes back.
It proved Cashman is not totally incompetent
Signing him would have been totally stupid
@Captainmike1 Cashman signed Carlos Carrasco, who in my opinion, has been just about the worst starting pitcher in the game the past 2 years. Would you rather have Carrasco or Corbin? I’d take Corbin in a heartbeat
But he’s practically free, lol. With their offense, they could endure his 5 ERA and make him win double digits with the innings he pitches. And there’s no incentives to worry about either cuz of the luxury tax.
I hope he comes back and has a decent season. Had to be tough to go through the last 3-4 years.
@Rsox. My sentiments exactly. Didn’t even know Corbin was an option. Cashman or Steinbrenner refuses to go higher with payroll.
Another option is Marco Gonzales if he’s healthy.
Perhaps do a reverse Gallo and take up hitting?
He still probably wouldn’t strike out as much as Gallo
I bet Gallo could strike himself out
If they get 100+ innings and sub 5.00 ERA this is a huge win. Say what you want, this guy took the ball 32 times per year.
When’s the last time that happened?
He hasn’t had a sub 5 era in a full season since 2019…
He might give 100+ innings, but the sub 5 era part is highly unlikely at this point.
Not if the 328 BABIP comes down a little
Hey, at least he’s resilient. He’s given up the most hits and/or earned runs in four of each of the previous five seasons, but has the 4th most starts. At least they know he’ll be avaiable everytime his spot in the rotation comes up.
Didn’t we used to call this bottom feeding?
I think we still call this suicidal. Or stupid. Or bad planning.
Bottom feeding is more the practice of taking advantage of someone in personal difficulty, like a bank exec putting the word out to real estate agents he knows for a line on people in desperate straits who need to sell their homes well below the asking price in order to pay for their child’s kidney transplant.
Or if you’re a banker, Tuesday.
As a longtime Nats fan, I have to smile at this development. Corbin is a good guy, and you can’t say he’s a pu**y. He’s durable and never misses a start — 31 or more every (full) season since 2017. Problem is, he can’t be consistent. He still has some stuff, but his velocity fell off, and when his slider doesn’t slide… the outfielders stay busy. But who knows? If handled right, and with some reversion to best form, he could help. I always thought the Nats shoulda moved him to the BP since they could never find a good lefty reliever. Like it or not, he can give you 5-7 legit innings every time out, then take a licking and keep on ticking.
Rangers finally get their Ace
Aaauuuuuuggggghhhhh.
That’s exactly the word I was looking for.
431 ER in the last 4 yrs
Sweet baby jesus
4.31 ERA over the past 4 years? That’s not too bad for a guy to fill out the bottom of a rotation. Oh wait….
He’s a perennial league leader!
If your offense scores 7 or more runs then Corbin is the guy….
Apparently Zach Greinke wasn’t answering his phone …
LOL!
Good on Patrick Corbin. Definitely doesn’t need an extra $1M. Just wants to keep pitching.
I wouldn’t call what Patrick’s doing, “pitching.”
Call the Rangers’ front office. Quick – they need to know!
It’s not pretty, by any shape of the means. He is still holding his own in the reliability department!!
Hmmm, Corbin signs with the Rangers for $1M. If the Yankees signed him for that amount, it could potentially cost $2M for one year. $2M for one year of Corbin showing even a sliver of his past is a bargain. This proves to fans that the Yankees aren’t going to make any more moves until Spring Training ends or the trade deadline.
Why would Corbin sign with the Yankees regardless of money? His chances of making the rotation are slim to none. The Yankees want better upside in their fifth spot and Corbin hasn’t been remotely effective in four seasons and is very homerun-prone.
Pitching machine in human form.
LMAO
i dont believe the rangers are this desperate.however if its a league minimum.then theres very little to loose.i mean stranger things have happend.but im not betting my house on it lol.
One of the worst contracts in MLB history!
I forgot that Corbin was actually really good at one point in his career.
I remember when stupid yankee fans pissed and moaned and threw a tantrum when the Yankees didn’t sign him
I mean it’s not as bad compared to you being pissed and moaning and throwing tantrums on MLBTR articles when professional athletes get paid and Greg Bird being out of MLB, Captainmike1…
If Corbin gets to pitch a lot at the Rangers stadium, he could easily lead MLB in home runs allowed, runs allowed, highest ERA and more…..
The new stadium plays neutral on home runs.
But you may still be correct, regardless.
Corbin over Bauer?! Corbin is a pitcher that players might select for home run contests.
I guess he is reliable to play all the games – injury free, less drama.
Sorry the Yankees passed on signing him. A lefty like him would logically have an advantage at The Stadium, due to its configuration.