It’s official: The Texas Rangers are going for it.
The defending World Series winners have increased their postseason odds from 5.5 percent to more than 25 percent in less than a month. Although the Rangers have won 12 of their last 16 games, including five in a row, they were also helped by the collapse of the Seattle Mariners. They are 2 1/2 games out of first place, one game below.500, and getting healthier.
Their pitching rotation will be strengthened by the anticipated returns of Cody Bradford, Dane Dunning, Tyler Mahle, and Jacob deGrom. Sources close to the Rangers’ intentions claim that they want to acquire a bat, preferably a platoon-neutral right-handed batter or a left-handed hitting outfielder/DH.
One player worth mentioning is Yandy Díaz of the Tampa Bay Rays. He is a right-handed batter with significant platoon splits this season (.879 OPS against LHPs,.678 against RHPs), but his lifetime averages are more balanced (.888-.769). Díaz has not played since the All-Star break and is currently on the restricted list for private reasons.
Sources knowledgeable on the process state that the Baltimore Orioles transaction is expected to close in the “coming days.” By then, the team led by Mike Arougheti and David Rubenstein will close on the remaining sixty percent of the team, which is estimated to be worth $1 billion (the entire acquisition cost was $1.725 billion).
At the deadline, how may Mike Elias, general manager of the Orioles, be affected by all of this?
According to Christopher Ullman, a spokesman for Rubenstein, “David would entertain anything that Mike Elias recommends.”
The Los Angeles Angels anticipate dealing with setup man Luis García and right-handed closer Carlos Estévez, whose contracts are about to expire.
It is interesting to compare Tanner Scott, a left-handed closer for the Miami Marlins and another possible free agent, to Estévez. Their anticipated ERAs are similar. Scott’s walk percentage is much greater (14.7 percent to 4 percent) than his strikeout rate (28.8 percent to 25.8). Walks might be particularly harmful during the postseason.
García and both closers are reasonably priced. By the deadline, Estévez will owe roughly one-third of his $6.75 million salary, Scott almost $5.7 million, and García roughly $4.25 million.
According to people briefed on the Marlins’ negotiations, the teams interested in Scott (and likely Estévez) are the Philadelphia Phillies, Los Angeles Dodgers, Orioles, Kansas City Royals, and New York Yankees. The Marlins are taking calls on almost every reliever they have, regardless of contract or remaining years of control, as The Athletic reported on Wednesday.
On Thursday night, they sent left-hander A.J. Puk to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for two prospects, outfielders Andrew Pintar and Deyvison De Los Santos. It was their first trade involving a reliever. Puk has two more years of club control after earning $1.8 million this season.
On Thursday night, they sent left-hander A.J. Puk to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for two prospects, outfielders Andrew Pintar and Deyvison De Los Santos. It was their first trade involving a reliever. Puk has two more years of club control after earning $1.8 million this season.
Anderson has a $13 million deal for the upcoming campaign. Rengifo is going to enter his walk year, but there are not many infielders in the free agency class, and he will still be reasonably priced after getting paid an increase in arbitration from his current $4.4 million salary. Ward’s arbitration will continue for an additional two years at a higher rate than his present $4.8 million.
According to people briefed on their maneuvers, the Pittsburgh Pirates are scouting left fielder Bryan De La Cruz and center fielder Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the Marlins.
Chisholm would be especially wise because the Pirates’ center fielders—Michael A. Taylor and Jack Suwinski, in particular—entered Thursday with a combined OPS of 29th in the majors.
Furthermore, Chisholm is under club control for an additional two years and should fit inside the Pirates budget. The remaining $2.625 million of his compensation for this season is due to him. In his second year of arbitration, that figure is probably going to rise to the $5 million mark, and it will likely rise once more in his third.
Christian Yelich’s decision to forego season-ending back surgery in favor of rest and rehabilitation was excellent news for the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday. However, Yelich is out with an injury, raising doubts about his ability to play for the remainder of the season. Thus, people briefed on the Brewers’ plans claim that they are looking for a left-handed hitter in addition to starting pitchers.
In terms of on-base percentage and batting average, Yelich leads the National League. It is evident that the Brewers cannot replace him. However, Brice Turang, Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, Jake Bauers, and switch-hitter Blake Perkins are their only options from the left side. Tyler Black, a corner infielder, is another left-handed hitting possibility that is playing at Triple A.
The teams who stand to gain the most from the Major League Baseball and Players Association agreement to allocate a percentage of the competitive balance tax earnings to teams that are losing television revenue are the Rangers, San Diego Padres, and Houston Astros.
The revenue from their regional sports networks is declining for all three of those clubs, who are considered “payors” in revenue sharing. They were not eligible to receive CBT revenues prior to the collective bargaining agreement amendment; only revenue-sharing recipients were. Under the new arrangement, commissioner Rob Manfred can award teams up to $15 million apiece, with a potential league-wide cap of $75 million, irrespective of their standing in the revenue-sharing program.
The CBT earnings will be distributed at the conclusion of the year, with a determination made after the season. It is uncertain if the improved certainty would have an impact on teams’ deadline behavior, but teams can predict what their local media shortage might be and what they might get from the league.
(Top photo of Carlos Estevez: Jayne Kamin-Oncea / Getty Images)
