Once again, the Texas Rangers find themselves in a very peculiar situation as the trade deadline looms just two days from now. This time of year can be fun for teams or a nightmare, as in the case of a 21-5 drubbing at the hands of the hated New York Yankees.
Franchises can give away the farm for a shot at the title or build the foundation for a potential championship run down the road. Then there’s the 2015 Texas Rangers who most would say their building for 2016 and beyond.
Jon Daniels comments were somewhat surprising as he states the Rangers “haven’t given up on contending this season” and doesn’t want to do a “fire sale” per se. He makes an interesting case for the future of this team that could pay dividends for next season if they play their cards right.
The “no brainer” trade that should happen is trading away pitcher Yovani Gallardo. He has pitched extremely well and would be a great number 3 starter for a contender this season. He’s also not under contract for next season and it’s highly unlikely the Rangers bring back the 29-year-old Texas native.
In return, the Ranger’s should absolutely ask for possibly a few (tier 2) prospects. Yovani brings that “workhorse” mentality to the ballpark every outing and teams like that tenacity come playoff time.
Everyone in the baseball world knows that Cole Hamels will be traded this week and despite the recent no no, GM Ruben Amaro might actually lower his ridiculous asking price for Hamels. I absolutely agree that Hamels should command a good haul of prospects back but Amaro is asking teams for a pile of cash plus two to three (tier 1) prospects in return.
The Dodgers have said they will not trade their top 2 players in Seager (SS) and Urias (LHP). The Rangers however have greater depth in their farm system and not players closer to the bigs like the Dodgers. Daniels has made fantastic deals in the past and he could make another this week to really make the current Ranger rotation absolute filthy in 2016.
Players like Joey Gallo, Nomar Mazara, and Nick Williams are the closest to the bigs, but they can’t give up more than one of the three. To make Amaro bite on a deal it has to offer at least one (tier 1) prospect with a few lower prospects and a possible player thats been in the league already. Would a package of Nick Williams (headliner), Ryan Rua, and either Luke Jackson or “Chi Chi” Gonzalez entice him enough?
On a side note, The Ranger’s front office absolutely has to listen to all offers on the table and players like Andrus, Choo, and even Beltre can’t be ignored. If a team came forward to take most of Choo’s contract with a prospect or two, I would think the Ranger’s would be very intrigued and could pull the trigger.
The deadline can’t come soon enough!