Texas Rangers: How long will the rebuild take?

After logging 102 losses and failing to reach the postseason in the last five seasons, the Texas Rangers are clearly not where they want to be. They are rebuilding. Again.  Or is it “still”? Frankly, it’s semantics at this point because the only recent attempts at building a contender have been half-hearted at best.

First the Texas Rangers needed youth injected into their aging roster. Then they needed to clear salaries. Then they needed a disciplinarian coach. Then it was a player-friendly coach. With all the ebbs and flows the only thing that’s stayed consistent has been the losing.

When can we expect the Texas Rangers to be contenders again?

When a professional baseball team asks this question, the answer is almost always positioned within the next three years. I mean, the answer here is three years, right? And that was about the same timeline we were thinking after the 2018 season.

If you remember, this was the year the Texas Rangers were supposed to be be competing again. They were in their new stadium and featuring their reloaded roster. As we know that didn’t exactly work out. The guys were thought would be cornerstones never materialized.

The last “cornerstone”, Joey Gallo, was traded away this summer for a handful of promising kids. A trade that basically ensures the rebuild is still ongoing and Rangers are still years, YEARS, away from being competitive.

The 100+ losses aren’t really as bad as they seem. Once it was clear the season was lost, the Rangers trotted out the youngest lineup in the majors. They progressed their prospects and advanced the timeline responsibly across most ranks.

They are rich in attractive young pitchers, which has always been their weakness, and seem to be much closer to a competitive roster than the numbers indicate. It stands to reason if they can add a premier free agent or two this winter and next winter, they could easily be competitive by 2024.

Throwing a wrench in this whole thing is CBA. The collective bargaining agreement between players and franchises expires this winter and threatens to bring a lockout. This would impact free agency and prevent the Rangers from effectively shopping. Every team will be at a disadvantage so it’s not like this issue is unique to Texas, but it does impact planning and potentially more.

At this point, the timeline is very much in question. Until the Rangers have completed their free agent shopping, we really won’t know. And that could extend into the spring depending how negotiations take.

Chances are the Texas Rangers are still two years away from being competitive. Hopefully I won’t be saying this same thing in 2024.