This tale is an excerpt from Kennedi Landry’s Rangers Beat newsletter. To read the entire newsletter, click here. Also, subscribe to receive it delivered to your inbox on a regular schedule.
Arlington — The Rangers’ 2024 season was marred by injuries and deterioration throughout, culminating in a 78-84 record and third-place finish in the American League West.
Texas is now confronted with the challenge of returning to the postseason, with manager Bruce Bochy and head of baseball operations Chris Young still at the helm and hoping to get things back on track for 2025.
Here are some important questions and dates as we approach one of the busiest times of the offseason:
Which players will become free agents?
Eligible players become free agents the day after the World Series ends. This begins a five-day “quiet period” in which free agents can only negotiate with their team. The Rangers have numerous players that will become free agents this offseason:
RHP Nathan Eovaldi (player option)
RHP Max Scherzer
RHP Kirby Yates
RHP David Robertson (mutual option)
LHP Andrew Heaney
LHP Andrew Chafin (club option)
RHP Jose Leclerc
RHP Jose Ureña
OF Travis Jankowski
C Carson Kelly
Young stated that getting back both Eovaldi and Heaney is a top goal for the Rangers. It should be, given the duo’s workload over the last two seasons with Texas.
“We’d love to bring those guys back, and we’ll do everything we can to make that happen,” Young stated at the end-of-season press conference. Yates and Robertson will most likely be considered, especially since the Rangers will need to rebuild a significant section of their bullpen by 2025.
Are any of them expected to obtain qualifying offers, and when is the deadline for that?
No Rangers are likely to extend qualifying offers five days after the World Series ends.
be expanded this winter. Which players have alternatives, how much money is involved, what influence it will have on payroll, and when must a decision be made?
The Rangers have three option decisions:
Eovaldi offers a $20 million player option for 2025.
Robertson: $7 million mutual option in 2025 ($1.5 million buyout)
Chafin: $6.5 million club option in 2025 ($500,000 buyout)
The deadline for teams and players to decide on contract options is five days after the World Series ends. Who could be a non-tender candidate, and when does the club need to make that decision?
The non-tender deadline is November 22 at 7 p.m. CT. Teams must formally tender contracts to unsigned players for the upcoming season, including arbitration-eligible players. If A non-tendered player becomes a free agent. The Rangers have five arbitration-eligible players, with first baseman Nathaniel Lowe expected to earn more than $10 million this winter. Jonah Heim, Dane Dunning, and Leody Taveras will earn just north of $4 million, with reliever Josh Sborz rounding out the bunch at just over $1 million. With Texas experiencing payroll uncertainty this winter while it works through its TV broadcast problem, someone like Dunning may find himself unemployed. However, Young will always highlight the importance of starting pitching depth, so this is unlikely to happen. Who has to be added to the 40-man roster this winter to avoid the Rule 5 Draft, and is there a shortage of roster spots? If yes, how can this be fixed, and when does it need to be done?
The Rule 5 Draft will take place on December 11 at the Winter Meetings in Dallas. The Rangers have a long list of players who might be picked up if they are not added to the 40-man roster by then, including right-handed pitchers Emiliano Teodo (the Rangers’ No. 6 prospect), Winston Santos (No. 8), and Aidan Curry (No. 19), as well as first baseman Abimelec Ortiz.
Of that group, the most pressing additions are Teodo, Ortiz and Santos, all of whom have taken huge steps forward over the past few seasons. Others like infielder Blaine Crim, infielder Cody Freeman, shortstop Maximo Acosta and pitcher Josh Stephan also would need to added, but those are less pressing additions. What kind of help do they need and will they be active in free agency?
Pitching. Always pitching.
“You’ve heard this before, but we’re going to pursue pitching,” Young said. “There’s no doubt we’re going to need more pitching, both in the rotation and in the bullpen, but I am excited about the arms we have. The bullpen is an area we need to address. We need to improve there, losing potentially three significant arms. We’ve got to find a way to backfill that. We’re going to have to get creative in terms of looking at the trade market, the waiver market, and developing our own pitchers as well, which is critical for success on the pitching side.”
Texas could also try to upgrade at catcher and multiple outfield positions, especially depending on the outlook for Evan Carter’s back injury. Catching depth will also be a bigger need following a rough 2024 for starting backstop Jonah Heim.
Young also underlined that the Rangers’ focus in 2025 will be on health and avoiding another year of deterioration across the board.
“The biggest remedy, in my opinion, is improving the guys that we currently have,” said the coach.
Who would they be willing to deal with?
If Texas has to reduce its workforce, contracts such as Adolis García’s $9.25 million or Lowe’s $10-plus million in arbitration may be considered, regardless of their size. Any roster enhancement should be evaluated outside of the core of Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, and Josh Jung, as well as ace Jacob deGrom, who leads the pitching staff.
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