Rangers Notes: Tender Deadline Moved Up, Signals Likelihood of Lockout
The Collective Bargaining Agreement between Major League Baseball and the Players Association (MLBPA) expires at 11:59 p.m. EST on Dec. 1—one week from now. Without a new CBA in place when the calendar turns over to Dec. 2, the owners of MLB are expected to lock out the players.
That scenario is all but guaranteed at this point.
First, commissioner Rob Manfred's remarks after the quarterly owners' meetings in Chicago last week made a lockout sound like a near-certainty. Not only did he say that time was "becoming an issue" in negotiations, he also made a lockout sound like a necessity to strike a deal with the MLBPA:
“I can’t believe there’s a single fan in the world who doesn’t understand that an offseason lockout that moves the process forward is different than a labor dispute that costs games."
Second, MLB and the MLBPA both agreed to move the tender deadline from Dec. 2 up to Nov. 30. This would give all players who are non-tendered—especially the arbitration-eligible players—an opportunity to try and negotiate contracts with clubs prior to the lockout.
The number of free agents on the market rises drastically on Dec. 2 every year when clubs non-tender some of their players. With business bound to be frozen during a lockout, moving the tender deadline up avoids players wondering what kind of Inception-type of limbo their contracts have fallen into.
The two sides agreeing to this move all but verifies that both of them expect a lockout to begin on Dec. 2.
As for the Rangers, Willie Calhoun seems like the only non-tender candidate of their arbitration-eligible players. According to MLB Trade Rumors, Calhoun is projected to make $1.6 million. The rest of their arbitration-eligible players—Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Brett Martin and Taylor Hearn—all have spots on the 2022 roster.
It would still be a bit of a surprise if Calhoun were non-tendered. He was the centerpiece in the Yu Darvish trade, and the Rangers haven't had much of an opportunity to see what he can do for a sustained period of time as he has dealt with some of the worst luck on the injury front. Even so, the Rangers may need room on the 40-man roster if their plans of adding multiple impact free agents come to fruition.
All-MLB Team Announced
The 2021 All-MLB Team was announced on Tuesday, and Adolis García—the only Texas Ranger nominee—did not make the cut.
Philadelphia's Bryce Harper, the Yankees' Aaron Judge and Washington's Juan Soto were the three First-Team outfielders, while Cincinnati's Nick Castellanos, Toronto's Teoscar Hernández and Houston's Kyle Tucker were the outfield trio on the Second Team.
Even so, it doesn't take away from the breakout season García put up as a 28-year-old rookie. He turned in arguably the most productive rookie season in Rangers history, setting team rookie records for home runs (31), RBI (90) and total bases (264). He became just the 14th rookie in AL history to hit at least 30 homers with 90-plus RBI in a season, the third to do so this century (Chicago's Jose Abreu in 2014 and New York's Aaron Judge in 2017).
García also led all big league rookies in RBI, total bases, extra base hits, Defensive Runs Saved, and placed second in homers while topping all AL rookie position players in STATS Inc. WAR (3.9). He was just the eighth rookie in Major League history with at least 30 home runs, 80 RBI, and 10 stolen bases (16) in a season.
However, García's fine performance did not go completely unrecognized. He was named the AL Rookie of the Year by The Sporting News in October, an award voted on by Major League players during the final two weeks of the regular season.
Breaking Down the McKinney/Reks Trade
On Monday, the Rangers pulled off their first trade of the offseason, and it was a relatively minor deal. The Rangers sent cash to the Los Angeles Dodgers in exchange for outfielders Billy McKinney and Zach Reks. The acquisition leaves the Rangers with just one vacant spot on the 40-man roster.
This sent some Rangers fans into a small frenzy on social media, criticizing the front office after lots of talk of adding marquee players via free agency and/or trades. However, this trade won't stop the Rangers from those plans.
First, the Rangers' plan to add impact veterans to their roster to help accelerate their rebuild is a multiyear plan. Texas isn't going to compete for a World Series in 2022, but they want to take a significant step forward in that direction. Part of that is following through on their ambitious plan to add multiple impact players with the vast financial flexibility bestowed upon them by ownership.
The second part is continuing to add depth to the organization. The Rangers are set up with the third overall pick in next summer's draft, and the minor leagues should see more high-end talent added at that time. However, there are other ways to add depth, and this trade was a unique way to do it.
From discussions I've had with a few people in the organization, this trade was likely more geared towards adding Reks, who can play either corner outfield position—a spot where the Rangers are pretty thin—and a bit of first base. He also has some pop in his bat. Reks slashed .280/.382/.539/.921 with 19 home runs and 67 RBI in 87 games at Triple-A Oklahoma City last year, and has produced a career slash line of .295/.383/.487/.870 with 54 home runs and 212 RBI across four minor league seasons in the Dodgers organization.
As the Rangers add free agents this winter, it's certainly a possibility that either McKinney and/or Reks are designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster. At that point, the hope is they can clear waivers and the Rangers keep them in the organization. If they are claimed, the only loss for the Rangers is the bit of cash they sent to the Dodgers—a worthwhile risk to add depth to an organization that is already trending upward.
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