Texas Rangers have the inside track on Martin Perez
By Reid Hanson
Coming off a career season, Martin Perez, is a hot name in free agency this winter. The Texas Rangers top starting pitcher enjoyed an elite season, by any measure. His All-Star season was backed by a 12-8 record (for those who still records), 2.89 ERA, and 169 strikeouts.
The Texas Rangers signed Perez last winter to a one-year, $4 million deal. After spending the first eight years of his career it served as a homecoming of sorts. Whether it was the experience, maturity, or simply comfort-level, Perez performed like never before, ranking in the top of most major categories in 2022.
His success combined with the Rangers failures made him a hot name near the MLB Trade Deadline. His low salary and elite production make him an attractive target for nearly every contender.
The Texas Rangers want to re-sign Martin Perez and Martin Perez wants to sign with the Texas Rangers.
Perez expressed his desire to stay in Texas. And the Rangers obliged, resisting the temptation to flip the pending free agent and banking on an agreement in coming months.
We have now arrived at “coming months.”
it’s safe to assume new free agent faces will be brought in, even if the Rangers are able to ink Martin Perez long-term.
Money obviously talks, but early on it’s pretty clear the Texas Rangers have the inside track on Martin Perez. Both sides want to find an agreement and the fact Chris Young held onto Perez at the deadline tells us the Rangers feel good about their chances of retaining the 31-year-old ace.
Chances are Martin Perez will triple his last deal in both money and length, but the rangers seem to have a good grasp on what it will take, and appear to have the resources and desire to get it done.
Chris Young recently stated starting pitching is the top priority this winter. Aside from Jon Gray, not much is certain in the rotation and the Rangers will have to be extremely active over the next few months in order to put together a competitive rotation.
Youth didn’t develop quite like the Texas rangers hoped it would last season so it’s safe to assume new free agent faces will be brought in, even if the Rangers are able to ink Martin Perez long-term.
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There’s a sense of calm around the Texas rangers regarding their negotiations with Martin Perez and that should be comforting to the fanbase. If the Rangers hope to take another step forward in 2023, they’ll need him.