Texas Rangers: Expectations For This Week
There hasn't been much to talk about so far this winter. The Rangers have actually made the largest free agent signing in the starting pitching market so far when they agreed to terms with Kyle Gibson. The contract is expected to be announced by the club sometime this week.
Despite the lack of news and rumors on the hot stove, there are still some things to look out for this week that will impact the Rangers' offseason moving forward.
Non-Tender Deadline
Major League Baseball's non-tender deadline is this Monday. All teams must submit a contract offer to all of their pre-arbitration and arbitration-eligible players by 7:00 p.m. CT on Monday night.
There are always a number of non-tender candidates for every team and it's no different for the Rangers. If Nick Goody accepts the assignment after being claimed on unconditional release waivers by the Rangers, Texas will have a full 40-man roster and will need to free up a spot to make room for Kyle Gibson. Non-tendering a player would be a simple solution.
Non-tendering a player doesn't necessarily mean the team is cutting ties with that player. They could turn around and offer that player a Minor League contract to bring them back into the organization. They did this exact thing with Adrian Sampson last winter.
Rangers' non-tender candidates may be Ian Gibaut, Luke Farrell, or Wei-Chieh Huang. Of the bigger names on the Rangers, Delino DeShields would be the most likely non-tender candidate, but with no other legitimate option at center field, that's unlikely to happen without a trade being made. That brings me to something else to watch for on Monday.
Expect at least a few trades, most of them usually minor, as teams try to get whatever they can for a player instead of non-tendering them. Jackie Bradley Jr. is a potential non-tender candidate for Boston as they look to shed payroll. Hypothetically, if Texas could pull off a trade for Bradley Jr., then maybe they do non-tender DeShields.
Monday's non-tender deadline has the potential for a flurry of trades or moves of any kind. By the time the deadline passes, the direction teams are heading gets a lot more clear.
New Uniforms
The Rangers plan to unveil new uniforms on Wednesday. Levi Weaver of The Athletic was the first to report this publicly.
Major changes are not expected for the Rangers' new uniforms, but the intrigue around the new uniforms is already causing a good mixture of anticipation and anxiety among Ranger fans on social media.
Personally, I love cosmetics in sports. A good-looking uniform is one thing I get excited about, so I decided to make my own mock-ups of what I'd like to see from the Rangers' new look.
News and Rumors
Of course, keep on the look out for all news and rumors that could flood social media this week.
Monday's non-tender deadline will surely bring us at least a little bit to talk about. This is also the week prior to the Winter Meetings in San Diego, CA from December 9th-12th.
The past couple Winter Meetings have been used more for laying groundwork on potential signings and trades, but this week could easily be used the same way by agents and GM's alike. Then the Winter Meetings could truly be tons of fun.
Keep up with all Rangers news and rumors by following our Rangers' insider, Chris Halicke on Twitter: @ChrisHalicke.
Follow SI Rangers Maven on Twitter: @RangersMavenSI
