RSS Rangers Team Notes

Jon Gray Goes Unclaimed On Waivers

Rangers righty Jon Gray went unclaimed on waivers, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Texas quietly placed Gray on waivers on Thursday. The 48-hour process came and went without another team putting in a claim, with that window closing this afternoon.

Gray pitched today. The waiver process technically closed at 1:00 pm Eastern, two hours before first pitch, but the Rangers could’ve continued to use Gray even if he’d still been on waivers at game time. Teams are permitted to continue playing those whom they’ve placed on outright waivers so long as they were not previously designated for assignment.

This move itself is likely to be inconsequential. Texas cannot send Gray, who has well over five years of MLB service, to the minors without his consent. They could release him, but all that’d do is remove him from the roster. Placing him on waivers was solely an attempt to dump the remaining $3.1MM on his $13MM salary. They were hoping another team would claim him and assume the rest of the contract. No one bit, and the Rangers would pay that money if they release him. They’ll probably keep him on the roster and could try to place him on waivers again in a week or two to see if they’ll find a taker.

It’s more interesting as a potential precursor to other moves. Rosenthal writes that the Rangers currently have no plans to place anyone else on waivers. However, today’s 14-2 drubbing at the hands of the Blue Jays dropped them to 61-63. They’ve lost four straight and eight of their last 10. They’re now eight games back in the division and five out in the Wild Card picture. Dropping any further in the standings over the next couple weeks could incentivize them to waive a number of veterans just before the end of August.

That has become increasingly prevalent over the past couple seasons. The Angels used waivers to dump the final month of Lucas Giolito’s and Reynaldo López’s contracts in 2023, allowing them to dip just below the luxury tax threshold. The Giants tried a waiver dump with Taylor Rogers and Thairo Estrada last summer, but no one took those contracts off their hands. It’s generally a course of action taken by a team that was a fringe contender at the trade deadline — and thus didn’t sell short-term veterans — that fell firmly out of contention in August.

The timing isn’t coincidental. Players need to be in an organization by September 1 to be eligible for postseason play. A player on a notable salary is much less likely to be claimed after the beginning of September, so the attempted waiver dumps tend to happen in the final few days of August.

Gray clearly doesn’t have surplus value in the eyes of MLB. He missed most of the season after breaking his wrist when he was hit by a comebacker in Spring Training. Texas has used him in relief since he was activated from the injured list on July 23. He’s allowed 12 runs in 14 innings, recording 12 strikeouts against six walks. Opponents have already tagged him for five home runs. His 94.7 MPH average fastball speed is slightly down from his usual 95-96 range even though he has only once worked more than three innings. He has lost a tick on his slider as well.

It may be impossible to find a taker for Gray. They can try again in a couple weeks, potentially hoping that a team would be more willing to take on the approximate $2MM he’s due in September than they were to assume $3MM right now. The Rangers have a number of other players who’d be very likely to get claimed if they choose to go that route.

Merrill Kelly, for instance, would be owed just over $1MM for the stretch run. He’s an impending free agent to whom the Rangers cannot make a qualifying offer because they acquired him midseason. Waiving him just one month after trading three pitching prospects to the Diamondbacks would make for poor optics, but the Rangers could welcome the chance to save the money if they don’t expect to re-sign him and determine they’re all but officially done this season.

Relievers Danny Coulombe, Hoby Milner, Phil Maton and Shawn Armstrong are all impending free agents who’ll be owed just a few hundred thousand dollars in September. The same is true of starter Patrick Corbin. It’d be harder to find a taker for Tyler Mahle, who’ll make just under $2.5MM for the season’s final month and is working back from a shoulder injury. Still, he’s another impending free agent they could make available. It’s also possible they go this route with Adolis García, who’ll probably be non-tendered in his final year of arbitration eligibility. He’d be due around $1.4MM in September and might clear anyway.

None of that seems to currently be under discussion. Gray would’ve been the obvious first player to make available since he’s not performing well regardless. Yet the team’s play over the past couple weeks could put a drastic roster overhaul on the table 10-14 days from now. Outright waivers are in reverse order of the MLB standings and — unlike the old revocable trade waiver system — are not AL or NL specific. Non-contenders have no reason to claim expensive rentals, so any waiver dumps (from Texas or otherwise) would be most meaningful to teams on the fringe of the Wild Card races like the Royals and Reds.

For Texas, this all comes against the backdrop of the luxury tax line. They intended to stay below the $241MM base threshold throughout the offseason. Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News and Jeff Wilson of DLLS Sports each suggested the Rangers’ deadline additions would push them past the tax line. However, Rosenthal writes that Texas is “already believed” to be below the $241MM mark. An unofficial estimate from RosterResource has them around $237MM but has yet to account for incentives that count against the tax number as they’re triggered.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/jon-gray-goes-unclaimed-on-waivers.html
 
Jon Gray Placed On IL With Thoracic Outlet Syndrome

Righty Jon Gray has been placed on the 15-day injured list, according to an announcement from the Rangers earlier this morning. A diagnosis wasn’t announced alongside that IL placement, but Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News was among those to relay that (according to club manager Bruce Bochy) Gray is suffering from thoracic outlet syndrome. There’s no timetable for Gray’s return to play at this point, but Bochy noted that he’ll “miss some time” due to the issue. Right-hander Caleb Boushley was recalled to replace Gray on the active roster.

TOS is certainly a worrisome diagnosis for Gray, though it’s one that comes with a wide variety of potential outcomes. Some of the more notable examples of players who were sidelined by TOS, such as Stephen Strasburg and Chris Archer, were never able to fully recover from the ailment and saw the issue bring an end to their big league careers, even after surgery. On the other hand, however, Gray’s teammate Merrill Kelly underwent surgery due to TOS following his age-31 season and has been quite successful in the years since then with a 3.64 ERA and 3.86 FIP in 128 starts. Jesse Dougherty of the Washington Post discussed the medical differences between the situations Kelly and Strasburg faced back in 2023, and interested readers are encouraged to read that piece in full.

It’s impossible to say at this point what the news means for Gray, but it seems unlikely he’ll pitch again this year. Selected third overall by the Rockies back in 2013, the veteran of 11 MLB seasons has spent each of the past four years in Texas. He served as a solid back-of-the-rotation arm for the Rangers from 2022-24, with a 4.16 ERA and 4.05 FIP in 387 1/3 innings of work, but this year he’s surrendered a 7.71 ERA in 14 innings of work across six long relief outings after missing most of the season due to a forearm fracture suffered after he was struck by a comebacker during Spring Training.

The news of Gray’s TOS diagnosis adds a new wrinkle to the club’s decision to place the right-hander on waivers last week, which was only reported on after he went unclaimed last night. The right-hander is owed an additional $3.1MM for the remainder of the 2025 season, and given that the Rangers are known to be just over the first luxury tax threshold it was hardly surprising that the club wanted to see if there were any takers on that remaining chunk of Gray’s salary. There’s no reason to assume that the Rangers knew about Gray’s diagnosis before placing him on waivers, of course, but it’s possible that the specter of an injury causing his recent poor performance scared some would-be suitors off from placing a claim.

Gray is slated to hit free agency following the 2025 season. He figured to be a decent veteran arm for a club in need of a back-of-the-rotation starter or swing man this winter, but now it’s impossible to say what’s in store for Gray until we have more information about his status, including whether he’ll require surgery and what his recovery timetable looks like. Of course, the possibility of retirement can’t be completely ignored for a veteran facing notable health challenges who will turn 34 in November, but Gray has given no indication to this point about his plans for 2026 and beyond.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/jon-gray-placed-on-il-with-thoracic-outlet-syndrome.html
 
Rangers Notes: deGrom, Rotation, Jung

The Rangers will skip Jacob deGrom’s scheduled start Wednesday, president of baseball operations Chris Young told reporters (link via Kennedi Landry of MLB.com). Young framed it as a workload management decision after the star righty experienced minor shoulder fatigue. Manager Bruce Bochy noted that deGrom has already visited team physician Dr. Keith Meister and been cleared of injury.

It doesn’t come as a huge surprise that deGrom is battling fatigue late in the season. He’s up to 24 starts and 140 1/3 innings. It’s a workload that he hadn’t come close to approaching since 2019. The truncated ’20 schedule limited him to 12 starts. deGrom was limited to 15 appearances the following year by elbow inflammation. Shoulder issues kept him to 11 starts in his final season with the Mets. His first two seasons in Texas were largely wiped out by Tommy John surgery.

That makes it all the more remarkable that deGrom has continued to dominate during his age-37 campaign. He owns a 2.76 ERA while striking out 27.3% of batters faced with a huge 14.3% swinging strike rate. His fastball is back into the 98 MPH range on average. deGrom did have his two worst starts in consecutive appearances on July 28 and August 3, but he has rebounded to toss 11 2/3 frames of three-run ball over his past two outings.

Texas has yet to announce a starter for tomorrow’s game. They don’t have a team off day until next Thursday, so even one skipped start won’t be easy to work around. A bullpen game would put a lot of stress on the pitching staff. Kumar Rocker is their only starter who is on optional assignment to Triple-A Round Rock. While there’s no indication that Rocker is dealing with an injury, he hasn’t pitched in the minors since August 7. Jacob Latz has made a few spot starts this season and could be recalled, but he hasn’t gone past two innings in an appearance in a month.

The short-term is less important than taking precautions with deGrom’s health. He’s signed for another two seasons with a club option for 2028. Meanwhile, this season increasingly looks like a lost cause. Texas lost again tonight to drop three games below .500. They’ve lost 10 of 12 and fallen six games back in the Wild Card race.

As their season appears to be slipping away, Opening Day third baseman Josh Jung finds himself on the bench. Bochy has left the former All-Star out of the lineup in each of the past three games. He did make a pinch-hit appearance midway through Tuesday’s contest. Young didn’t sugarcoat things when discussing Jung’s recent lack of playing time.

“There’s been a lot of volatility with Josh,” the front office leader said on Monday (link via Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News). “There are times when he’s dialed in and the performance is strong, but when it hasn’t been as dialed in, it’s been a little bit more undisciplined. And just inconsistent. Given the kind of team our team is and the way a lot of guys have struggled this year, you can only tolerate so much volatility.”

It’s clear Jung has fallen out of the lineup for performance reasons, not any kind of nagging injury. Rookie Cody Freeman started at the hot corner on Sunday and Monday. Tonight, Josh Smith moved into third base from the right field spot he’d manned of late, drawing Alejandro Osuna into the outfield.

Jung entered play with a .241/.290/.376 batting line over 372 plate appearances. As Young mentioned, he continues to chase would-be balls at a high rate and hasn’t taken many walks. Jung had nevertheless hit fairly well through the end of May, but an atrocious June (.158/.208/.221) led Texas to send him back to Triple-A for a reset. Jung recorded a 10-game hit streak with three home runs immediately after being recalled on July 21. He has dropped back into a slump over the past two weeks, batting .143 with 11 strikeouts in 10 games.

A former eighth overall pick, Jung is on track to surpass the three-year service threshold and will reach arbitration this offseason. The Rangers wouldn’t non-tender him, but it doesn’t seem out of the question that they could consider a change-of-scenery trade. They’ll certainly need to make some changes to a lineup that ranks 24th in MLB in scoring.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/rangers-notes-degrom-rotation-jung.html
 
Evan Carter Diagnosed With Fractured Wrist

4:34pm: Texas officially placed Carter on the 10-day IL and recalled Michael Helman from Triple-A.

1:47pm: Rangers outfielder Evan Carter was plunked by a pitch on his right wrist Thursday, and manager Bruce Bochy told hosts Kevin Hageland and Cory Mageors in a radio spot on 105.3 The Fan today that subsequent imaging revealed a fracture. The team hasn’t confirmed that Carter will miss the remainder of the season, but that certainly seems plausible, given the dwindling number of days on the schedule. The team hasn’t formally announced the injury, a placement on the IL or any corresponding transactions yet but will surely do so prior to tonight’s game.

Carter actually remained in the game after being hit on the wrist. He ran the bases for himself and played several more innings — even tallying a single in his next at-bat — before being lifted later in the game. Alejandro Osuna replaced him late in the game and could see an uptick in playing time with Carter joining Adolis Garcia (sprained ankle) on the injured list. Osuna, Wyatt Langford, Cody Freeman, Josh Smith, Ezequiel Duran and designated hitter Joc Pederson are the other outfield options on the Rangers’ big league roster at the moment (though Pederson has played just one game in the outfield this season).

It’s the latest in an ongoing series of tough-luck injuries for Carter, a former second-round pick and top prospect who’s yet to turn in a full season at the MLB level. He’s previously been plagued by back injuries, which led to a (relatively) minor ablation procedure last October, and he also missed time earlier this season due to a strained quadriceps.

When healthy, Carter has had an up-and-down career. He took the majors by storm late in 2023, debuting with a .306/.413/.635 slash in 75 plate appearances down the stretch before posting comparable numbers in the postseason as the Rangers marched to their first World Series title in franchise history. Last year’s ongoing back injuries surely contributed to a dismal follow-up effort, wherein he slashed just .188/.272/.361 in 162 turns at the plate. He’s been somewhere between those two extremes in 2025, hitting .247/.336/.392 — about seven percent better than league-average, by measure of wRC+.

All told, Carter is a career .235/.326/.420 hitter in the majors though that doesn’t include his outstanding playoff showing in 2023, when he batted .300/.417/.500 in 72 plate appearances. It’s clear that Carter is an immense talent, making it all the more frustrating for both him and the team that injuries have repeatedly kept him off the field.

The Rangers optioned Carter at the beginning of the season and kept him in Triple-A until May 6. It’s probably not a coincidence that said timeline means he’ll finish out the year just two days shy of two full seasons of major league service. Had Carter been recalled even two days earlier, he’d be controllable for an additional four seasons. Instead, the Rangers now control him for five additional years, all the way through 2030. In all likelihood, he’ll be a prominent factor in the Texas outfield both next year and for the foreseeable future — health permitting, of course.

In the meantime, a floundering Rangers club will try to piece together the outfield with a combination of Langford, Smith, Freeman, Duran and Pederson. Texas operated as buyers at last month’s trade deadline, but they’re 7.5 games back in the AL West and 5.5 games out of an AL Wild Card spot. Since their deadline additions are believed to have pushed them over the CBT line, it wouldn’t be a surprise if Texas placed some impending free agents on outright waivers between now and the Sept. 1 deadline for postseason eligibility, in an effort to tiptoe back underneath the luxury threshold.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/rangers-evan-carter-broken-wrist.html
 
Astros Sign Craig Kimbrel

August 22: Houston finalized their one-year deal with Kimbrel this afternoon. They also activated Lance McCullers Jr. from the 15-day injured list to start tonight’s game in Baltimore. They cleared active roster space by optioning rookie Logan VanWey to Triple-A and placing southpaw Bennett Sousa on the 15-day injured list. Brandon Walter, who has been out for a month with elbow inflammation, was moved to the 60-day IL in the necessary 40-man move.

Sousa is dealing with elbow inflammation himself. Manager Joe Espada said Sousa reported discomfort after Tuesday’s appearance and has not progressed as hoped. He’s flying back to Houston for further evaluation while the team continues its road trip (link via Chandler Rome of The Athletic).

August 21: The Astros are in agreement with Craig Kimbrel on a major league contract, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. The SportsMeter client was just granted his release from a minor league deal with Texas, per Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News. Houston will need to create space on both the active and 40-man rosters.

Kimbrel spent a little more than two months in Triple-A with Texas. He signed in June one day after electing free agency from the Braves. That followed a bizarre sequence in which Kimbrel’s initial team called him up for one day. The nine-time All-Star labored through a scoreless inning in his lone appearance. That remains his only MLB outing this season. Kimbrel has otherwise divided the year between the upper minors affiliates of Atlanta and Texas.

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Between the two organizations, Kimbrel carries a flat 3.00 earned run average in 39 minor league innings. He has recorded an excellent 31.5% strikeout percentage but has walked nearly 13% of batters faced. It’s a similar profile as Kimbrel has shown in the big leagues in recent seasons. He had a strikeout rate in the 31-34% range while issuing free passes between 10-13% of the time in both 2023 and ’24. Kimbrel remained effective with the Orioles in the first half of the ’24 season, but he melted down after the All-Star Break (20 earned runs in 17 innings) and has barely gotten an MLB look since then.

While the Triple-A results are solid, Kimbrel’s raw stuff hasn’t been as sharp this year. His fastball has been in the 92-93 MPH range in Triple-A; he averaged less than 92 on the heater in his only big league outing. He’d sat closer to 94 last year and was up to 96 as recently as 2023. He missed enough bats against minor league hitters to intrigue the Astros, whose bullpen has struggled of late.

Only the Rockies, Blue Jays and Nationals have a higher bullpen ERA than Houston does over the past month. The Astros lost Josh Hader for at least the remainder of the regular season to a capsule strain in his shoulder. Bryan Abreu is an elite back-end arm in his own right, and they have a strong left-handed trio of Steven Okert, Bryan King and Bennett Sousa. Abreu is essentially their only reliable righty reliever. Kimbrel’s command makes him a volatile bullpen piece as well, but he has more swing-and-miss upside than Enyel De Los Santos or Shawn Dubin provide in the middle innings.

The signing is expected to become official on Friday. Getting the deal done before September 1 means Kimbrel will be eligible for postseason play if the Astros qualify. He’ll have a little over five weeks of regular season action to convince the front office and coaching staff he’s worth carrying in October. Houston leads the Mariners by 1.5 games in the AL West. They’re 3.5 games clear of the Royals, the top team that is not currently in playoff position.

Image courtesy of Robert Edwards, Imagn Images.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/astros-to-sign-craig-kimbrel.html
 
Jon Gray Non-Committal About Playing Beyond 2025

Jon Gray’s season was all but officially ended last week by a diagnosis of thoracic outlet syndrome, and a subsequent placement on the Rangers’ 15-day injured list. TOS surgery would keep Gray sidelined for a big chunk of the 2026 season and perhaps the entirety of next year, and Gray would be 35 on Opening Day 2027. The idea of hanging up his glove entirely has apparently at least crossed Gray’s mind, as Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News writes that Gray “responded mostly with a shrug” when asked by reporters Friday if he was going to keep playing beyond this season.

When asked about pitching again in 2025, Gray said “I don’t have any idea about the future. I guess there is always hope. But it’s hard to have hope with everything that’s happened. It’s just become a really frustrating pattern.” That said, Gray noted that he had some interest in looking to “go out with a good feeling” rather than be somewhat forced out of baseball due to injury.

Given that a TOS surgery hasn’t even been officially planned yet, it is probably too soon to be reading too much into Gray’s immediate reaction, as his emotions are (understandably) raw about this latest major setback to his career. There is no rush for him to make any big decision about his playing career, and naturally Gray might want to take his time in considering whether or not to walk away from the game entirely.

This major injury adds another layer, however, to what was already looking like a crossroads of an offseason for the right-hander. Gray is in the final season of his four-year, $56MM contract, and he has pitched only 14 innings this season due to a broken wrist suffered during Spring Training, and then this most recent IL placement. The Rangers have used Gray out of the bullpen rather than as a starter, and he has struggled to a 7.71 ERA over his six appearances.

The sample size is small enough that it’s hard to make any clear observations from Gray’s 2025 performance, and five homers allowed over his 14 innings obviously skewed his numbers to some extent. It still clearly wasn’t the type of platform year Gray was hoping for heading into free agency, and if healthy, he would’ve likely been looking at a one-year guarantee from a team hoping he could bounce back. The TOS surgery could make a two-year deal a possibility, with a minimal salary in the first year and a larger commitment for 2027 when Gray is presumably healthy, yet the overall size of that contract doesn’t figure to be too pricey considering the shaky track record of pitchers returning in good form after thoracic outlet syndrome.

Injuries have been a frequent concern for Gray, as a variety of issues (foot problems, an MCL strain, an oblique strain, blisters, shoulder inflammation, a forearm strain, multiple groin strains in 2024, and his fractured wrist) have led to IL stints over the course of his 11 Major League seasons. Despite these health woes and the fact that he spent his first seven seasons pitching in the thin air with the Rockies, Gray has a respectable 4.49 ERA, 23.4% strikeout rate, and 7.8% walk rate over 1230 2/3 career innings.

Chosen third overall by Colorado in the 2013 draft, Gray didn’t quite reach the star level associated with such lofty draft status, but he has been a solid rotation member over his career with some flashes of being a frontline starter. If this is indeed it for Gray, he can look back with pride on a long career that included a World Series ring with Texas in 2023. (Gray contributed to that title with a 1.59 ERA over 5 2/3 relief innings during the Rangers’ postseason run.)

Grant suggested two other factors that might impact any of Gray’s retirement plans. Gray has over 10 years of MLB service time — officially crossing that threshold earlier this season — and therefore is already qualified for a full pension. There is also the widespread expectation that MLB will be facing a work stoppage when the collective bargaining agreement expires after the 2026 season, so if Gray does indeed miss next year while rehabbing, a return to the field could be even further delayed by a lockout.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/jon-gray-non-committal-about-playing-beyond-2025.html
 
Marcus Semien Out 4-6 Weeks Due To Foot Injury

August 24: As noted by McFarland (among other reporters), the Rangers revealed today that Semien met with a foot specialist today and was diagnosed with a fractured third metatarsal bone and a Lisfranc sprain in his left foot. Those injuries will leave him out of commission for four to six weeks, effectively ending the veteran’s 2025 campaign for at least the regular season. On the off chance that the Rangers can rally and find themselves in a postseason spot, it’s at least theoretically possible Semien could join the club for the playoff push. Kennedi Landry of MLB.com notes that Semien will not need surgery on his foot at this point.

August 23: The Rangers announced this afternoon that they’ve placed Marcus Semien on the 10-day injured list with a left foot contusion in a move that’s retroactive to August 22. In a corresponding move, outfielder Adolis Garcia was activated from the injured list.

While Semien had been plagued by his ailing foot for a few days at this point, it’s still a moderate surprise to see the veteran head for the shelf. The 34-year-old veteran is arguably one of the most reliable players in the entire sport when it comes to availability. Since his first full season with the A’s back in 2015, Semien has appeared in 93.7% of his teams’ games. Almost all of those missed games came in 2017, when he was limited to 85 games by a sprained wrist. Outside of that season, he’s not appeared in less than 155 games in a 162-game season since becoming a full-time player.

That will now change, as Semien won’t be eligible to come off the IL until August 31. It’s more of a loss for the Rangers than Semien’s 88 wRC+ may make it seem at first glance. Strong defense and baserunning has allowed Semien to put together 2.1 fWAR so far this year in spite of his weak offensive numbers, and Semien has actually hit quite well since breaking an early season slump; while he was one of the worst hitters in baseball over the season’s first two months, since May 30 he’s slashed .270/.338/.464 (122 wRC+) in 311 plate appearances.

Ezequiel Duran and Cody Freeman have gotten reps at second base the past two days while Semien has been out. That duo could continue seeing playing time at the position, though utility man Josh Smith will likely also get reps at the keystone over the next few days. That’s all the more likely now that Garcia is back in the fold. Smith had been playing outfield primarily in recent days while Garcia spent a minimum stint on the injured list due to a sprained ankle. It’s been a tough year for Garcia, who has hit just .224/.266/.388 with a wRC+ of 79 in 116 games, and unlike Semien he hasn’t yet been able to turn his season around over a substantial stretch of time. He’ll be looking to do just that down the stretch this year, as without a strong finish to the season Garcia looks like a very likely non-tender candidate headed into the offseason.

In other Rangers injury news, it seems veteran right-hander Chris Martin shouldn’t be expected to return to the majors anytime soon. Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News wrote this afternoon that Martin was forced to end his live bullpen session early today after the calf strain that’s left him sidelined since late last month flared up. Manager Bruce Bochy called the incident a “little setback” in Martin’s efforts to return to the mound for the Rangers this year, but with September rapidly approaching it’s fair to wonder just how long Martin’s window to return will remain open. Texas would surely love to have him back, as he’s been excellent when healthy this year with a 2.36 ERA in 39 appearances.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/rangers-place-marcus-semien-on-il-activate-adolis-garcia.html
 
Nathan Eovaldi Likely Out For Season Due To Rotator Cuff Strain

Nathan Eovaldi has a rotator cuff strain and is likely done for the season. President of baseball operations Chris Young relayed the news to reporters, including Kennedi Landry of MLB.com.

The All-Star righty had been listed as the probable starter for tomorrow’s game against the Angels. There was no previous indication he was dealing with an injury. Eovaldi had reeled off seven innings of one-run ball with nine strikeouts against the Guardians on Friday. It’s not clear whether he pitched through discomfort toward the end of that appearance or suffered the injury during a between starts throwing session. In either case, he’s headed for the injured list.

It’s the latest blow in a Rangers season that has unraveled. They bought at the deadline. They’d played at a 16-9 pace in July to pull within a few games of a Wild Card spot. Their impressive run differential and seemingly positive trend convinced the front office to push in prospect capital for Merrill Kelly, Phil Maton and Danny Coulombe. They’ve followed up with their worst month of the season.

Texas has played at a 9-14 pace in August to fall below .500. They swept Cleveland over the weekend, more or less driving a nail into the Guardians’ season, but were shut out in last night’s series opener against the Angels. They’ve also lost Evan Carter (wrist fracture), Marcus Semien (foot fracture) and Eovaldi to what may all be season-ending injuries. Overcoming those hits to erase a 5.5 game postseason deficit in the final month seems very unlikely.

Eovaldi has had a brilliant year when healthy. He carries a career-best 1.73 earned run average while working nearly six inning per start. He has earned a quality start in 14 of his 22 appearances. Eovaldi has fanned 26% of batters faced while showing his typical elite command. The only black marks have been injuries. He was limited to one appearance in June by elbow inflammation and will miss all of September with the shoulder issue. Eovaldi has turned in a 2.67 ERA or better in every other month.

This was the first season of his three-year, $75MM contract. Texas has both Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom signed for another two guaranteed years. They’ll go into next season with as much upside as any 1-2 punch in MLB. With both pitchers in their mid-late 30s, however, it’s difficult to count on them to stay healthy. That makes it all the more disappointing that the Rangers have seemingly squandered a season of fantastic production from both veterans.

Eovaldi’s injury comes a few days before the Rangers need to decide whether to wave the white flag and place a number of players on waivers. They could try to dump the salaries of a handful of players (Merrill Kelly, most notably) in an effort to get below the $241MM luxury tax line. Players need to be in an organization by September 1 in order to be playoff eligible, so they’d be much likelier to get claimed if their waivers resolve before the end of August. Waivers take 48 hours to process, meaning players need to land on the wire no later than Friday to be playoff eligible with a claiming team. Texas plays two more against the Angels and is off on Thursday before making that call.

Patrick Corbin takes the mound opposite Yusei Kikuchi tonight. They’ll probably run a spot starter or bullpen game tomorrow. Kumar Rocker is on optional assignment but hasn’t pitched in a Triple-A game in nearly three weeks as he irons out mechanical issues. Caleb Boushley pitched 2 2/3 frames in the minors on Sunday. That essentially leaves long man Jacob Latz, who last pitched on Wednesday, as the only option on the 40-man roster for a spot start.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...ne-for-season-due-to-rotator-cuff-strain.html
 
Rangers, Dylan Moore Agree To Minor League Deal

The Rangers have agreed to a minor league contract with utilityman Dylan Moore, reports Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. Moore, a client of Klutch Sports, was recently released by the division-rival Mariners.

Moore now returns to the organization that drafted him a decade ago. Texas selected him in the seventh round in 2015 out of the University of Central Florida. He didn’t advance beyond High-A before being traded to Atlanta a year later. Moore spent time in the Braves’ and Brewers’ systems until finally getting an MLB opportunity in Seattle as a minor league free agent.

It proved to be an adept pickup for the M’s front office. Moore played parts of seven seasons in Seattle and was a capable role player for most of that time. He won a Gold Glove in a utility capacity just last year. Moore bounced around the diamond while generally hitting for power against left-handed pitching. He has never been a high average hitter but showed enough of a well-rounded skillset that Seattle signed him to a three-year, $8.875MM extension in Spring Training 2023.

The first two seasons of that deal went well enough. Moore’s bat has absolutely cratered this year, as he’s hitting .193/.263/.359 across 213 plate appearances. He’s batting .149 with 44 strikeouts in 109 plate appearances with the platoon advantage and has gone a staggering 3-63 (.048) with 36 strikeouts in 41 games since the start of June. Seattle could no longer live with that kind of production, even in a bench capacity, while they fight for a playoff spot.

There’s neither much risk nor a huge ceiling on the deal for Texas. Seattle is on the hook for the rest of Moore’s $3.575MM salary. Texas would only pay him the prorated $760K league minimum for time he spends on the MLB roster. Moore will be a free agent at season’s end. He’ll provide an alternative to Ezequiel Duran and Josh Jung for infield playing time if he gets called up. Texas just lost Marcus Semien to what appears to be a season-ending foot fracture. Moore would be playoff eligible if Texas makes a surprise September run.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/rangers-sign-dylan-moore-mariners.html
 
Poll: The Rangers And The Waiver Wire

The Rangers decided to add at this year’s trade deadline and acquired several arms to beef up the pitching staff. Merrill Kelly was the headliner, but the team also swung deals for Danny Coulombe and Phil Maton in an effort to make up for somewhat lacking production from the club’s offense. That strategy, unfortunately, hasn’t worked. The Rangers’ position in the standings hasn’t changed much as they’ve remained stuck around .500, as has been the case for most of the year.

With the start of September just a few days away, a Rangers club that has been on the cusp between contending and retooling all season is now faced with one final point of decision-making: Should they stay the course and hope for a white hot September that pushes them into the postseason? Or should they throw in the towel and try to sneak back under the luxury tax after the club’s deadline trades pushed their projected payroll slightly over the edge?

They have the opportunity to do the latter if they put Kelly, Coulombe, Maton, and other veterans on expiring deals through waivers. If those players get claimed, they’ll move on to the claiming team and the Rangers will be off the hook for the final month of their salary. Aside from those players who were added at the trade deadline, other expiring deals like those of Chris Martin, Patrick Corbin, Shawn Armstrong and Hoby Milner could make sense for the team to make available. Even Adolis Garcia, who remains under club control via arbitration for the 2026 season, could make sense to make available on waivers given his status as a potential non-tender candidate.

Doing so might give the team additional financial flexibility for the offseason as they look ahead to 2026. Ownership preferred to remain under the tax threshold and reset its penalty levels this past offseason. Their deadline push was made with the team’s postseason odds around 40-50%. Those odds have plummeted, with FanGraphs giving them a 7.2% chance and PECOTA pegging them at 9.8%.

Texas would avoid paying roughly one-sixth of the full season salary for any player who gets claimed off waivers. That means parting ways with Kelly (who is making $7MM this year) would save the clubs around $1.2MM. Cheaper players like Maton ($2MM) would only shave a little over $300K off the team payroll if claimed.

Of course, saving that money doesn’t do much for the club if it isn’t enough to put them under the luxury tax, and there’s no guarantee they’ll be able to shed enough money to do so. The team saw with Jon Gray earlier this month that there’s no guarantee a player will be plucked off waivers just because he’s been placed there.

The Rangers’ next most expensive pending free agent is Tyler Mahle, and he’s only just resumed throwing off the mound as he tries to work his way back from a rotator cuff strain. It’s hard to imagine a team placing what’d be a roughly $2.75MM bet that Mahle would not only be able to make it back by season’s end but also return to his prior levels of efficacy. It’s a similar situation with Martin, who has been out since late July with a calf strain and still isn’t on a rehab assignment (though he’d amount to a less costly $916K gamble).

Looking beyond the financial aspect of Texas’s decision, it’s worth considering the club’s position in the standings. The 67-67 Rangers have gone just 10-14 since the trade deadline and have lost 12 of their last 20 games. They’ll need a winning percentage a lot better than .400 in September if they’re going to have any hope of making the postseason. Still, a playoff berth isn’t entirely out of the question. Texas is currently 4.5 games out of the final AL Wild Card spot, which is held by the Mariners. They’re six games back of the Yankees in the second AL Wild Card spot as well as the Astros for the AL West title. They still play Houston six times and also have three-game sets with the Brewers and Mets. Their other 16 games are against teams with losing records.

Those six games against the Astros in September give the Rangers more control over their destiny than most clubs have by this point on the calendar. Perhaps that’s reason enough to stay the course. After all, it would be disappointing for the organization if a rare healthy season from Jacob deGrom went to waste.

On the other hand, the club’s core of players is facing some health challenges. Evan Carter, Marcus Semien and Nathan Eovaldi have all been shelved with what are very likely season-ending injuries in recent days. The loss of Martin in the bullpen has also been a real blow, and it’s unclear if he’ll make it back to the field before the end of the season.

How do MLBTR readers think the Rangers should handle their situation? Should they place a handful of short-term veterans on waivers to try to duck under the tax line and save money for another run in 2026, or would it be best to keep the team together and try to win this year despite dwindling playoff odds and mounting injury concerns? Have your say in the poll below:

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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/08/poll-the-rangers-and-the-waiver-wire.html
 
Corey Seager To Undergo Appendectomy, Not Ruled Out For Season

Rangers shortstop Corey Seager has appendicitis and will undergo an appendectomy. President of baseball operations Chris Young relayed the news to reporters, including Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News, saying that Seager will be “out a period of time” but hasn’t been ruled out for the entire year. Per Jeff Wilson of DLLS Sports, infielder Dylan Moore will be added to the roster with outfielder Evan Carter moved to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot.

Though Seager isn’t completely ruled out for the season, it’s obviously a rough blow. Seager is the best player on the team. Despite missing some time due to hamstring strains and only playing in 102 games, he has produced four wins above replacement, in the eyes of FanGraphs. He has 21 home runs, a 13% walk rate, 19.6% strikeout rate, .271/.373/.487 batting line, 137 wRC+ and excellent grades for his shortstop defense.

No club ever wants to lose its best player to an injury but the Rangers are in an especially precarious spot. They have been hovering around .500 for most of the year, currently sporting a 68-67 record. That puts them 4.5 games back of a playoff spot with a month left to go.

They’re not totally knocked out but they’ve taken a few big punches lately. In the past month-plus, they have lost Seager, Carter, Marcus Semien, Nathan Eovaldi, Jake Burger, Sam Haggerty, Chris Martin, Jon Gray and Cole Winn to the injured list. Carter recently suffered a wrist fracture and this transfer means he’s ineligible to return before mid-October. Semien’s foot injury is going to cost him four to six weeks. Eovaldi’s rotator cuff strain is likely season-ending.

The club still has a chance to make a late charge for a postseason spot but doing so without so many key contributors will be tough. There’s also a ticking clock right now due to some granular MLB rules. The Rangers tried to avoid the competitive balance tax this year but reportedly went just over the line when making upgrades to the roster ahead of the trade deadline. They could sneak back under the tax line if a few players are claimed off waivers. However, a player would only be postseason eligible with a new club if claimed prior to September 1st. Since waivers are a 48-hour process, the Rangers would have to put guys on the wire in the next 24 hours or so, or else they would suddenly have significantly less appeal to other teams.

Merrill Kelly, Tyler Mahle, Danny Coulombe, Hoby Milner, Phil Maton, Shawn Armstrong and Patrick Corbin are all impending free agents. They therefore have no value for the Rangers beyond this year. If the club decides to punt on 2025, they could place some or all of them on waivers. It’s unlikely all of them would get claimed but Kelly definitely would and a few others probably would as well. Adolis García can be retained for 2026 but is a non-tender candidate and could make sense for the wire as well.

Time will tell if Seager’s injury pushes them to make that bold decision. For now, Josh Smith will likely step in for Seager at shortstop, per Wilson. That will leave playing time at second, which will be taken by some combination of Ezequiel Durán, Cody Freeman and Moore.

Moore and the Rangers just signed a minor league deal a few days ago after he had been released by the Mariners. He’s having an awful season, which prompted that release. He has a .193/.263/.359 batting line and 35.7% strikeout rate.

He has been better than that in the past. He came into the year with a career .206/.316/.384 line and 102 wRC+, despite striking out in 29.8% of his plate appearances. He had 104 stolen bases and had played every position except catcher.

Though he hasn’t been good this year, he’s essentially free for the Rangers. Since the Mariners released him, they remain on the hook for the majority of his salary. The Rangers only have to pay him the prorated portion of the league minimum salary for any time he spends on their roster. That amount will be subtracted from what the Mariners pay.

Photo courtesy of Kevin Jairaj, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...go-appendectomy-not-ruled-out-for-season.html
 
MLBTR Podcast: Aroldis Chapman, And Offseason Possibilities For The Braves, Rangers, Pirates And Marlins

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…


Plus, we answer your questions, including…

  • What will the Braves do this winter after claiming Ha-Seong Kim? (10:10)
  • What can the Rangers do this winter? (22:05)
  • What can the Pirates do for left field next year? (31:30)
  • Who will the Marlins make available in trades this offseason or at next year’s deadline? (36:40)

Check out our past episodes!


The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of James A. Pittman, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...r-the-braves-rangers-pirates-and-marlins.html
 
Poll: Can The Astros Hold On To Win The AL West?

Fangraphs gives each current division leader at least a 60% chance of maintaining that lead through the end of the regular season, per their latest playoff odds. Not all of those chances are equal, however, and two division leaders are far less likely to hold onto their title than the rest.

One is the Blue Jays, who around 45% of MLBTR readers view as likely to hold onto the division as of yesterday’s poll. The other is the Astros, who took control of the division off the back of a dominant 19-7 month of June but since then have struggled to keep pace. They’re 26-29 since the start of July and 16-21 since July 24. Houston’s managed to fend off the Mariners and Rangers in the AL West until now, however, and actually has a larger lead (three games) over Seattle now than they did in mid-August, when they were briefly tied for the division lead at one point.

That rebound in recent weeks has helped them stay afloat, but there’s still cause for concern. What was once a dominant front two in the rotation has now dropped to one; while Hunter Brown is still excelling amid a campaign that’s likely to earn him legitimate consideration for the Cy Young award, Framber Valdez is struggling badly of late with an ERA north of 6.00 since the start of August. The bullpen took a major hit when Josh Hader was sidelined by a sprained shoulder, and the lineup simply isn’t scoring enough runs. The Astros are 29th in the majors since the start of August when it comes to runs scored, and 21st since the start of July. Cam Smith hasn’t sustained his strong start to the year, Isaac Paredes and Jake Meyers are on the injured list, and Jeremy Pena is no longer hitting like a potential MVP candidate.

All of those flaws in the roster have left Houston vulnerable, and their +14 run differential is not just lower than those of the Mariners and Rangers, it’s the lowest of any team currently in playoff position. With six games against Texas and three more against Seattle still on the schedule for September, they’ll need to duke it out with those teams outright in order to hold onto the division. That provides an opportunity for those clubs to make up a lot of ground in a relatively short amount of time. And with the toughest strength of schedule remaining in the division, Houston can’t necessarily bank on cleaning up against weaker teams in their other games.

All of that may make it seem as though the Astros have their work cut out for them if they want to hold onto their lead in the AL West. While that could certainly be true, it’s not as if they don’t also have significant advantages working in their favor. For one thing, much of that rough injury luck has been balanced out by other players returning. Yordan Alvarez and Cristian Javier, in particular, figure to be impactful pieces for Houston down the stretch. And while players like Smith and Pena have cooled off to varying degrees, Jose Altuve and Christian Walker have turned back the clock in the second half after tough starts to the season. Carlos Correa is already hitting better now that he’s back in Houston than he had been in Minnesota, and perhaps a veteran core of Altuve, Walker, Correa, and Alvarez will be able to turn things around for the offense over the season’s final month.

The other thing working in Houston’s favor is the reality that Seattle and Texas aren’t exactly behemoths, either. While the Mariners lineup has put up respectable numbers led by Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodriguez, and Randy Arozarena, their vaunted starting rotation has looked much more vulnerable this season than in previous years. They’ll get help from a flimsy schedule that pits them against the likes of St. Louis, Colorado, and Atlanta over the season’s final weeks, but without George Kirby and Logan Gilbert posting better numbers than their league-average season figures, that might not be enough. As for the Rangers, injuries to Nathan Eovaldi, Marcus Semien, and Corey Seager have dismantled the team’s veteran core for the foreseeable future. The losses of Semien and Seager, in particular, are forcing them to rely on a far less reliable group of position players for the stretch run as they look to take advantage of their aforementioned six games against the Astros this month.

How do MLBTR readers view Houston’s odds of making it to October with the AL West crown in hand? Will their veteran core be able to score enough runs going forward, or will the Mariners or perhaps even the Rangers sneak in to take over? Have your say in the poll below:

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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/poll-can-the-astros-hold-on-to-win-the-al-west.html
 
Rangers Notes: Garcia, Latz, Mahle

Adolis García is out of the Rangers’ lineup today in Arizona. He pulled up while beating out a force play in the ninth inning of last night’s contest. He gingerly came around to score on Jake Burger’s RBI triple but was lifted for defensive replacement Alejandro Osuna in the next half-inning.

Manager Bruce Bochy revealed this evening that García has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 right quad strain (via the MLB.com injury tracker). That’s one of moderate severity and often merits an injured list stint. However, Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News points out that the Rangers’ lack of upper minors position player depth is a reason they’ve held off on making a roster move.

Texas already has Marcus Semien, Evan Carter, Corey Seager and Sam Haggerty on the injured list. Infielder Justin Foscue is their only healthy position player who is on optional assignment. He has three hits in 51 career big league at-bats and doesn’t have any kind of outfield experience. The Rangers already have Burger, Ezequiel Duran and Dylan Moore as infielders on the MLB bench. Foscue wouldn’t play much even if they recalled him.

They could select a non-roster outfielder like Billy McKinney or Dustin Harris. They’re operating with at least one free 40-man roster spot since Jon Gray can be transferred to the 60-day injured list after being diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome. Ideally, neither McKinney nor Harris would get much playing time as Texas tries to run down a Wild Card spot. They’ll hold out hope for a quicker return from García rather than bringing anyone else up, although Bochy conceded the veteran outfielder is unlikely to play for at least a few days.

García has had a middling season. He’s been on a hot streak since returning from a minimal IL stay due to an ankle sprain, however. He’s hitting .368 with four doubles and a couple home runs in his past nine games. Texas will need to rely on Osuna in right field for at least a few games, while Michael Helman is playing center field in Carter’s stead. They’re using another rookie, Cody Freeman, at second base with Semien on the shelf.

The Rangers have overcome the injuries of late, feasting on a soft schedule to keep their season alive. Going back to August 22, they’ve swept the Guardians and A’s while taking two of three from the Angels. They were down to their final strike but came back to beat the Diamondbacks yesterday. They’ve pulled within a game of the reeling Mariners and still have an outside chance at catching the division-leading Astros, who are 4.5 games up and likely to lose to the Yankees tonight.

Texas also took a huge hit on the pitching side two weeks ago. Nathan Eovaldi’s potentially season-ending rotator cuff strain seemed like a nail in the coffin. The Rangers didn’t have a clear option to fill the vacated rotation spot. Kumar Rocker is sorting through mechanical adjustments and not pitching in minor league games.

Texas appears to have settled on lefty Jacob Latz to round out the starting five behind Jacob deGrom, Jack Leiter, Merrill Kelly and Patrick Corbin. Latz started and worked 4 1/3 innings on 66 pitches against the Halos last Wednesday. He’s on the mound again tonight at Chase Field. The 29-year-old southpaw had made a trio of spot starts throughout the season but has mostly worked from the bullpen. He’d been pitching short relief stints in Triple-A for the first few weeks of August. Latz has done well when called upon, taking a 3.13 ERA with a 23.4% strikeout rate into today’s start.

It might not be long before the Rangers get a rotation reinforcement. Tyler Mahle, out since mid-June with a rotator cuff strain of his own, may finally be nearing a return. He began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Round Rock this evening. The results weren’t good — he got knocked around for five runs while only completing one inning in a brutal pitching environment in Albuquerque — but logging game action at all is a big development. It raises the possibility of Mahle getting back on an MLB mound within the next couple weeks, potentially to work in some kind of tandem with Latz rather than building all the way to a traditional starter’s workload.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/rangers-notes-garcia-latz-mahle.html
 
Poll: Who Will Round Out The AL Playoff Field?

While most of the league’s postseason races are more or less wrapped up at this point, one highly competitive race remains: that for the final AL Wild Card spot. The Yankees and Red Sox have commanding leads for the first two spots that have pushed their playoff odds (per FanGraphs) to 99.7% and 97.4% respectively, but the rest of the field remains fairly open. Three clubs are within two games of the final spot. Who will make it to October among that group? A look at each of those teams:

Seattle Mariners (73-67)

The Mariners are currently in control of the final AL Wild Card spot. Cal Raleigh is in the midst of an MVP-caliber season behind the plate, and he’s been supported by Julio Rodriguez and Randy Arozarena in the middle of the lineup. Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez were added at the trade deadline to help further bolster the offense. Suarez slumped for his first two-plus weeks back in Seattle but is back to form, hitting .265/.345/.592 over his past 14 games.

The rotation that was widely expected to be the club’s strength, however, has looked fairly pedestrian. Only Bryan Woo has stood out from the crowd as George Kirby, Luis Castillo, and Logan Gilbert have all been closer to average starters than ace-caliber arms. Bryce Miller was injured for much of the year and has struggled when healthy. Still, the bullpen remains elite, and the club is in solid position in the standings even after this week’s sweep at the hands of the Rays. They have an outside shot at winning the AL West, sitting 3.5 games out with a three-game set against the Astros later this month. They’ll need to fend off the Royals in Kansas City for three games as well.

Texas Rangers (72-69)

Sitting just 1.5 games back of the Mariners, Texas is in position to pounce if Seattle falters. A schedule that gives them six games against Houston as they sit five games back in the AL West leaves a small chance at capturing the division or perhaps pushing the Astros far enough down the standings that the Mariners claim the West while the Rangers take the Wild Card for themselves.

Even with the advantage of controlling their own destiny, actually making good on that will be difficult for Texas. Key players like Nathan Eovaldi, Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Tyler Mahle and Evan Carter are all on the injured list. Wyatt Langford will be leaned on heavily to help carry the offense. A resurgent Jacob deGrom and deadline acquisition Merrill Kelly are still on hand to lead the rotation, and former No. 2 pick Jack Leiter has been excellent over his past 12 starts (2.89 ERA, 28.2 K%). Will the remaining pieces of the team be enough to push them into the playoffs?

Kansas City Royals (71-69)

Like the Rangers, the Royals have managed to hang around the Wild Card race despite significant injuries. Kris Bubic and Cole Ragans have missed much of the year, and Seth Lugo has now joined them on the shelf. That leaves Michael Wacha and rookie Noah Cameron as the team’s most likely starters for the Wild Card series if they can make it into the postseason.

The good news is that the addition of Mike Yastrzemski has been a game-changer for the lineup. He’s belted seven homers in 107 plate appearances and batted .242/.327/.560 overall in Kansas City, joining Vinnie Pasquantino, Maikel Garcia, and Bobby Witt Jr. to form an impressive top four. Carlos Estevez and Lucas Erceg are a quality duo at the back-end of the bullpen, and three home games against the Mariners give them plenty of control over their fate.

Tampa Bay Rays (71-69)

Baseball’s hottest team has won seven games in a row, including a sweep of the Mariners in Seattle and a Thursday victory over the Guardians that pushed Cleveland 3.5 games out in the Wild Card chase. Junior Caminero is the envy of the league at third base, Yandy Diaz and Brandon Lowe are as impressive as ever in the middle of the lineup, and Drew Rasmussen (2.66 ERA over his past 10 starts) looks capable of going head-to-head with just about any pitcher as a Game One starter. Thirteen games against the Red Sox, Blue Jays, and Cubs over the course of the rest of the season leave the Rays with plenty of adversity, but perhaps their young talent can stay hot and push them to October.

Which of these teams will come out on top and join the Blue Jays, Tigers, Yankees, Red Sox, and Astros in the postseason? Will the Mariners be able to hold on? Will the Royals or Rangers overcome their injury woes to force their way in? Or can the Rays stay hot through the end of the year? Have your say in the poll below:

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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/poll-who-will-round-out-the-al-playoff-field.html
 
Rangers To Place Adolis Garcia On Injured List

The Rangers are placing Adolis García back on the 10-day injured list, manager Bruce Bochy tells reporters (including Jeff Wilson of DLLS Sports). García has been out for the past three days nursing a Grade 2 quad strain. Texas will backdate the placement to September 2, and Bochy suggested he could be back after one more week on the shelf.

Dustin Harris was selected onto the big league roster to backfill the outfield depth. Texas transferred Jon Gray from the 15-day to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man roster spot. Gray was already known to be out for the season after being diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome.

García suffered the injury while beating out a fielder’s choice on Monday. It didn’t seem especially likely that he’d be able to avoid the injured list. The Rangers preferred to play a man short for a couple games to see if García could at least factor in as a pinch-hitter for this weekend’s huge series against the Astros. That apparently wasn’t going to be on the table. García just returned from a sprained ankle and had hit .368 in his past nine games.

Harris is up to provide an extra man off the bench. The Rangers had outrighted him off the 40-man roster shortly after the trade deadline. Harris had a solid August while in Triple-A, batting .326/.379/.453 across 104 plate appearances. Texas has been forced to stretch their outfield depth with Evan Carter also injured.

29-year-old rookie Michael Helman has taken over center field and has played very well in a limited sample. Alejandro Osuna will get the majority of the right field playing time while García is out. The Rangers are going with Ezequiel Duran in right today because Houston called up rookie left-hander Colton Gordon to start the opener.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/rangers-to-place-adolis-garcia-on-injured-list.html
 
Rangers Shut Down Josh Sborz For Rest Of 2025 Season

Josh Sborz’s 2025 season will end without any big league action, as Rangers manager Bruce Bochy told MLB.com’s Kennedi Landry and other reporters that Sborz has been shut down from throwing. Sborz underwent right shoulder debridement surgery last November and didn’t return to game action until he tossed two-thirds of an inning with Triple-A Round Rock on July 12.

The right-hander’s rehab assignment had multiple stops and starts, and Sborz finished with a 5.25 ERA over 12 combined innings at the Double-A and Triple-A levels. Beyond the inflated ERA and the walk rate that was much higher than usual, Bochy made note of Sborz’s velocity drop — the reliever was averaging only 91.7 mph on his fastball, which is well beneath his 95.1 mph average from 2024. Sborz isn’t dealing with any new physical issues, but there wasn’t enough time left on the calendar to get him fully ramped up, so the Rangers will instead put Sborz on the shelf until the start of Spring Training.

It is undoubtedly a frustrating outcome for Sborz, who has now seen essentially two full years of his career spoiled by his bothersome right shoulder. He was limited to 16 1/3 innings with Texas in 2024 due to four different IL stints related to rotator cuff strains and shoulder fatigue, and the hope was that his surgery would correct the issue once and for all. The initial projection was that Sborz would miss the first 2-3 months of the 2025 season, yet a slower-than-expected throwing progression set his clock back and resulted in an entirely lost year.

With elbow problems also limiting Sborz to 22 1/3 innings in 2022, the right-hander’s tenure in Arlington consists of a 4.86 ERA, 28.7% strikeout rate, and 10.0% walk rate over 143 appearances. Sborz’s 3.46 SIERA over that same stretch is probably a better reflection of his overall performance, even if Sborz has had a tendency to hurt himself by allowing home runs. Despite the inconsistent results, Sborz will be fondly remembered in Texas for his 2023 postseason, as he posted an 0.75 ERA over 12 playoff innings to help the Rangers capture the World Series.

The two injury-plagued seasons have coincided with Sborz’s first two years of arbitration eligibility. He avoided the arb process by agreeing to a $1.1MM salary for 2025, and he’ll get only a minimal raise above the number for 2026. The dollars are small enough that Texas will probably still tender Sborz a contract if the team thinks he’ll be fully ready for next year, though a non-tender and then a re-signing on a non-guaranteed deal is a possibility.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/rangers-shut-down-josh-sborz-for-rest-of-2025-season.html
 
Rays Claim Caleb Boushley

The Rays have claimed right-hander Caleb Boushley off waivers from the Rangers, per a team announcement. Fellow righty Brian Van Belle was transferred from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL to make roster space.

Boushley, 32 next month, has pitched a career-high 43 1/3 innings with Texas in 2025 but has been tagged for an unsightly 6.02 earned run average in that time. However, he’s posted respectable strikeout and walk rates of 21.2% and 7.3% in that time, and he’s done a nice job keeping the ball in the park (1.04 HR/9). Boushley has been plagued by a sky-high .374 average on balls in play, which has surely contributed to his struggles in terms of stranding baserunners (just 58.7%).

Tampa Bay has placed two relievers — Van Belle and Mason Englert — on the injured list within the past five days. Boushley adds a fresh arm to the bunch, bringing those decent rate stats and the ability to be optioned to his new organization. He’ll give the club some flexible depth that is stretched out enough to throw multiple innings, if need be. Boushley has just one outing greater than an inning so far this month, but he tossed three innings of long relief with the Rangers as recently as Aug. 20.

Boushley didn’t make his big league debut until he was already 29 years old (with the Brewers in 2023). As such, despite being on the cusp of his 32nd birthday, he can be controlled for a full six seasons. Given his minimal track record, it’s unlikely that’s a prominent consideration right now, but if he impresses the Rays enough to stick on the 40-man roster this winter (or to re-sign as a minor league free agent in the event that he is cut loose), it could become part of the thinking in 2026.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/09/rays-claim-caleb-boushley-waivers-rangers.html
 
Rangers Sign Donovan Solano, Cal Quantrill To Minor League Deals

The Rangers have signed infielder Donovan Solano and right-hander Cal Quantrill to minor league contracts, the team informed reporters (including Evan Grant of The Dallas Morning News). Both players had recently been released — Solano by the Mariners, Quantrill by the Braves.

Solano follows in the footsteps of former M’s teammate Dylan Moore. He signed with Texas days after being released by Seattle in late August. Marcus Semien had just landed on the injured list, and Texas lost Corey Seager to an appendectomy a couple days later. Moore was quickly called up and is usually in the lineup when the Rangers face a left-handed starting pitcher. Texas also has Rowdy Tellez operating as a bench bat after signing him following a release from Seattle in June.

The 37-year-old Solano provides veteran depth in that injury-riddled infield. Cody Freeman and Josh Smith are the primary middle infield duo. First baseman Jake Burger has been injured three times this year. Moore and Ezequiel Duran are ahead of Solano as right-handed bench bats. Solano might be the first one up if another player goes down before Seager returns, as Texas hasn’t wanted to give Justin Foscue (their only position player on optional assignment) much playing time.

Solano signed a $3.5MM free agent contract with Seattle over the winter. His .252/.295/.344 slash across 69 games was below his typical level. Solano had been an average or better hitter each season from 2019-24. Seattle didn’t start him anywhere other than first base, but he has plenty of experience at second and third base as well.

Quantrill is on his third team of the year. The veteran starter signed with the Marlins for $3.5MM over the offseason. Quantrill struggled to a 5.50 earned run average over 24 starts. Miami didn’t find a taker at the trade deadline and placed the former eighth overall pick on waivers last month. The Braves placed a claim that got the Fish off the hook for the rest of the salary.

It proved an ill-advised move for Atlanta. They only gave Quantrill two starts, over which he was blasted for 12 runs in eight innings. The Braves released him last week. Quantrill now has an ERA a little north of 6.00 across 117 2/3 frames. His 16.6% strikeout rate is well below average. Quantrill throws a lot of strikes but has become increasingly susceptible to the home run over the past couple seasons. He’s now three years removed from a career season in Cleveland, when he took the ball 32 times and posted a 3.38 ERA through 186 1/3 innings.

The injury bug for Texas has carried into the rotation. Tyler Mahle will need at least one more rehab start as he works back from a shoulder injury. Nathan Eovaldi probably won’t be back this year due to a strained rotator cuff. Jon Gray is done for the season. Texas has gotten solid work from lefty Jacob Latz, who has stepped in as the fifth starter behind Jacob deGrom, Merrill Kelly, Jack Leiter and Patrick Corbin.

Any other injury, at least until Mahle returns, would essentially leave them with no one who can step in as a fifth starter. Kumar Rocker is out of the short-term picture as he works on mechanical issues. Tampa Bay claimed swingman Caleb Boushley off waivers this week. Quantrill isn’t a high-upside pickup but is at least stretched out and could make a spot start if anyone else goes down.

Texas has managed to stay within a game and a half in the Wild Card race despite the injuries. Neither Solano nor Quantrill would be eligible for the playoff roster if they qualify. They’ll each be free agents again at season’s end. These additions are solely about adding organizational depth for the next three weeks. Texas would owe either player the prorated $740K league minimum for however long they spend in the majors if they promote them.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...lano-cal-quantrill-to-minor-league-deals.html
 
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