Rangers Offseason Receives An Embarrassingly Low ESPN Grade
If the Rangers wanted to repeat as champions, they had a checklist of things they needed to do before the season began.
By Thomas Erbe
One of the hardest things to do in sports is to win a championship. Even harder than that is to repeat as champions. That is precisely what the Texas Rangers will be looking to do in 2024.
The Rangers won their first World Series championship in franchise history in 2023. They had the best record in the AL West with the Houston Astros. However, the Rangers were given a Wild Card berth due to tiebreaking rules.
They made quick work of the Tampa Bay Rays and top-seeded Baltimore Orioles before taking down the Astros in comeback fashion to win the pennant. After taking down the Arizona Diamondbacks in the Fall Classic, they were partying in the streets of Arlington.
But now it's time to retool and reset. If the Rangers wanted to repeat as champions, they had a checklist of things they needed to do before the season began. Did they do enough to receive a passing grade from one national writer?
Rangers Pass Offseason Grade, But Just Barely
ESPN senior writer David Schoenfield graded each of MLB's 30 franchises' offseason activities (Subscription Required). He was brutally honest when it came to the defending champs. Schoenfield gave the Rangers a C-.
He cited that one need for the Rangers was building depth in the bullpen. The Rangers did that by adding veteran David Robertson. But the real hole in their efforts came in the starting rotation. With Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer likely out until August, the most significant need for the Rangers was re-signing Jordan Montgomery to return to the rotation.
Montgomery is currently still a free agent and available. Every day that goes by makes it seem less likely he will return to Arlington. But if he does not, what is the plan for the Rangers? Nathan Eovaldi, Jon Gray, and Dan Dunning will only take this team so far.
If the Rangers are able to work out a deal to bring Montgomery back, this will likely change their grade and outlook for the season. But if they miss out and do nothing more to the rotation, they may be in some trouble.
The oddsmakers weren't very impressed by the Rangers' offseason either. On FanDuel Sportsbook, they are behind four other teams in terms of odds (+1400) of winning the World Series.
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