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Texas Rangers Trade Rumors: Cole Hamels Pros and Cons

By Reid Hanson

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The Texas Rangers have been interested in Phillies ace, Cole Hamels, for quite a while. Word is, trade talks are heating up, and Hamels may be on his way to Texas.

The Texas Rangers have never made their love for Cole Hamels a secret. It’s been said, the Rangers looked into acquiring the ace as recently as spring training this season. Trade talks then stalled, largely because the price was just too high, and the Rangers had too many question marks.

In other words – -Mortgaging the future is ok if you’re only one piece away, but the Rangers weren’t sure how close they were to being contenders.

Things have changed in Arlington quite a bit this season, as the Rangers are only a handful of games behind the Astros in the AL West, and well-situated for a strong summer once their injured players make it back. Adding an ace like Cole Hamels would legitimize their rotation, and make them strong contenders in the AL.


What kind of price the Phillies are asking in return appears to remain the sticking point. It’s unlikely the Phillies have moved from their price much, so one can reasonably assume it’s the Rangers who are willing to give more, now that they feel they are contenders.

The Pros are pretty obvious…

Cole Hamels, 31, is particularly attractive because he is signed through 2019 (including his club option). The $87.5M owed is substantial, but considering his talent, durability, and track record, it’s money well spent.

Looking to next season it gets even better. Hamels and Yu Darvish at the top. Derek Holland and Martin Perez at 3 and 4. Chi Chi Gonzalez and Nick Martinez at 5 and 6. That’s a pretty stout rotation.

The Cons are all about the price…

There’s no question the Phillies will do their best to get Joey Gallo and/or Chi Chi Gonzalez in the deal. Jon Daniels would never deal his rookie all-stars, but that’s the kind of value the Phillies are looking for in return. You can bet the pool of prospects will be extremely substantial.

Nomar Mazara and Jake Thompson would both need to be included in any discussion. Jorge Alfaro would be tough to keep out of the deal as well. In all, Rangers fans can expect to forfeit four of their top prospects to the Phillies. That’s about as steep as it gets considering how highly thought of the Rangers top prospects are.

But it’s still probably worth it.

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Nobody loves prospects more than the Rangers (and Rangers Nation), but the cold hard reality is even the top prospects are more likely to fail than to succeed. Every player is unique and every situation is different, but it’s against all odds that any of the Rangers’ top pitchers turn into the pitcher Cole Hamels is.

If this deal was just for a rental, then no way can the Rangers pull the trigger and mortgage their future, but Hamels would probably be in Texas for 3.5 years. The Rangers have always struggled with signing top-of-the-rotation pitchers and Hamels and Darvish would give the Rangers the kind of cornerstone stability unseen in these parts.

What do you think? Would you pull the trigger or is the price too high? What would a trade like this do to the Rangers’ chances of competing the next 1-3 years?

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