Texas Rangers Sign Former Reliever of Division Rivals To Add More Bullpen Depth

Another bullpen arm has been signed by the Texas Rangers to potentially join their revamped group.

Sep 22, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Seattle Mariners relief pitcher JT Chargois (84) pitches against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at Globe Life Field. / Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers bullpen has undergone some major changes this offseason.

Four key contributors from last season’s team - Kirby Yates, David Robertson, Jose Leclerc and Andrew Chafin - all hit free agency. None of them have been retained, as Yates landed with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Leclerc signed with the Athletics; Robertson and Chafin remain available.

With so many openings in the bullpen, the team made several additions.

Robert Garcia was acquired in a trade with the Washington Nationals while Chris Martin, Hoby Milner, Jacob Webb and Shawn Armstrong were signed in free agency.

On Wednesday morning, they added another potential bullpen addition to the mix when it was announced the Rangers signed JT Chargois to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training per the team's official social media account.

A second-round pick of the Minnesota Twins in the 2012 MLB draft, he has spent seven seasons in the Major Leagues and will be competing for a spot in the Texas bullpen during camp.

Chargois has been an effective reliever throughout his career with a 3.35 ERA across 231.1 innings pitched.

His strikeout and walk rates are in an acceptable, albeit not spectacular, range. He does a good job of limiting hard contact and generally keeps the ball inside the park with a 50.3% ground ball rate and 2.6% home run rate, which is below the league average.

Where Chargois has struggled is in the health department.

He has reached the 50-inning mark only once in his career.

Over the last three years alone he has dealt with neck spasms, a strain of his ribcage, two oblique strains and issues with his right elbow.

It was a surprise the Seattle Mariners didn’t retain him via arbitration, as he was projected to earn $1.7 million. That is an acceptable amount for the production and risk that he carries, but they opted to non-tender him.

That has led him to their American League West rivals, where he is amongst the most experienced non-roster invitees along with Jesse Chavez.

With only one career save on his resume, Chargois doesn’t solve their end-of-game issues. But he could be a solid addition as a middle reliever should he earn a spot in spring training.

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