Rangers come up dollars short

By David Mullen

After a 60-102 season, the second worst in their 49-year history, the Texas Rangers ownership gave GM Chris Young and President of Baseball Operations Jon Daniels a blank checkbook. Young and Daniels unloaded many players in the previous portfolio and did business the new-fashioned way.

They bought them. 

After the epic crash of 2021 where the Rangers losses mounted, the restructured 2022 Rangers provide invested fans reasons for optimism. Five hundred million reasons. 

Infielder Corey Seager signed a 10-year, $325 million contract. Infielder Marcus Semien inked a seven-year, $175 million deal. The two Rangers will make more annually than the entire 26-man payroll of the division rival Oakland Athletics.  

The Rangers rarely do anything by the book. They spent $500 million on two players who last played shortstop, even though the only position player who had showed any consistent promise was shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Semien will move to second base with Texas and Kiner-Falafa will move on.

In fairness to the Rangers brain trust, they traded Kiner-Falefa to the Minnesota Twins to get starting catcher Mitch Garver. The Rangers haven’t had a decent catcher in more than a decade. Garver will bat third or fourth (for now) and has excellent power but has averaged just 62 games a year over five seasons.

 Semien and Seager will bat at the top of the order. Add versatile free agent signee Brad Miller, and Manager Chris Woodward will have plenty of platooning possibilities and lineup options. Players like Adolis Garcia, Nathaniel Lowe, Willie Calhoun and Kole Calhoun will be asked to have big years. The Rangers have more Calhouns in a supporting role than a 1950s western.

Texas wasn’t done spending, throwing $56 million at starting pitcher Jon Grey. The team will break camp with 15 relievers to account for a shortened spring training for starters. 

Third base remains unsettled, but with a potent lineup the Rangers will earn some respect. Compared to last year, a .500 season and a third-place finish will feel like striking gold. 

The defending AL champion Houston Astros and maturing Seattle Mariners emerge as the best in the AL West. The Astros are slipping while the Mariners are on the rise. Houston gets pitcher Justin Verlander back, but lost Carlos Correa to free agency. The Mariners are building a combination of solid talent and budding stars. They signed Cy Young Award winner Robbie Ray to head the starting staff.

The Los Angeles Angels remain an enigma. Since 2014, the team boasts four AL MVP awards (Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani), but only two winning seasons. A healthy Anthony Rendon and newly acquired pitcher Noah Syndergaard have the Angels praying for some good fortune.

The normally competitive A’s were decimated in the offseason for low wage prospects. Gone are stars Chris Bassitt, Matt Olson, Matt Chapman and Sean Manaea. Oakland ownership would trade San Francisco Bay for an inflatable pool if they could.  

Billionaire A’s owner John Fisher, whose parents started retail giant Gap Inc., inherited his family money but remains the cheapest owner in sports. He says he can’t pay players without a new stadium. That’s been proven to be false. 

He also bought the MSL San Jose Earthquakes, got a new stadium built and then let the team crumble. He is doing the same thing with the A’s, wanting a new waterfront stadium to survive and then threatens to move to Las Vegas like the Oakland Raiders did. Thanks to the ill fit Fisher, Oakland will fall into the gap where losing teams languish. 

The AL Central is dictated by the winds in Chicago. If the White Sox remain healthy, they could run away with the division. Carlos Rodon is gone, but their starting pitching remains strong despite Lance Lynn’s injury. They have one of the best closers in Liam Hendricks, an Oakland budget cut in 2021. Their lineup features Tim Anderson, Luis Robert, Jose Abreu, Eloy Jimenez, Yasmani Grandal and Yoan Moncada. Young Andrew Vaughn could hit 35 home runs batting seventh. The Southsiders are loaded.

The Minnesota Twins were active in the offseason, adding Sonny Gray, Correa and ex-New York Yankees Gio Urshela and Gary Sánchez, a human sieve behind the plate. But their pitching staff is also full of holes. 

The surprise team in baseball will be the Kansas City Royals, with underrated Whit Merrifield, everyone’s favorite catcher Salvador Perez and the shining rookie Bobby Witt Jr., son of the former Rangers starter. Mild mannered Zack Greinke is back on the mound. 

It’s a “New Adventure for Old Cleveland.” The Indians are now called the Guardians, but this middle of the pack team still needs a shift change. Third baseman José Ramírez is a wonderful hitter, but there is not much else in the lineup to guard against. The Detroit Tigers will win the World Series, probably in 2026. For now, enjoy rookie Riley Greene and a slew of players being promoted from their deep minor league system.

All eyes are on the AL East because all eyes are forced to be on the AL East. Their games are on TV more than Snoop Dogg and Kelli Clarkson commercials. The Toronto Blue Jays are “must-see TV,” with Chapman joining pedigree players Bo Bichette, Cavan Biggio and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to create baseball’s best infield. Add George Springer, Teoscar Hernández and Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and “Canada’s Team” are not a bunch of “hosers.” They are the best team in the AL East.

This is the spot where one asks, “How do the Rays do it every year?” They are a team with no egos. 

Tampa used a staggering 158 different batting orders last season, and no one complained. The Rays have a strong young pitching staff, are masters of the platoon, but still have wunderkinds in Wander Franco and Randy Arozarena. Tampa makes the playoffs again.

This is the spot where one asks, “How do the Yankees underachieve every year?” They are a team with many egos. 

New York used a few different batting orders last season, and everyone complained. The Yankees have an overrated pitching staff, are masters of buffoonery, but still have stars in Aaron Judge and Giancarlo “don’t call me Mike” Stanton. New York misses the playoffs again.

By getting off to a surprising start, the Boston Red Sox made the playoffs last season. Too much to ask in 2022, but adding Irving’s Trevor Story’s big bat could dent the Green Monster. The Red Sox again begin a season without an ailing Chris Sale to anchor the staff. The Baltimore Orioles have some entertaining players like Cedric Mullins, Ryan Mountcastle and Trey Mancini, but another 100-loss season seems likely.

The Astros, White Sox and Blue Jays will win their divisions, with the Rays, Mariners and surprising Royals making the playoffs. Chicago wins the American League and beats the LA Dodgers in the World Series. As for Texas, the recent changes will pay short-term dividends but are still a year away from seeing a big return.