Rangers Breakout Star Named Major Trade Candidate at Deadline by Insider

The Texas Rangers can't seem to figure out what kind of team they are going to be when the trade deadline rolls around at the end of July.

Playing roughly .500 baseball but no worse or better, this is a team who is stuck between either making aggressive moves to try to contend again after winning a World Series two years ago, or selling their desired assets and starting a re-tooling process.

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In reality, the Rangers have not been good enough to fully justify buying, nor have they been bad enough to fully justify selling.

All too often, this is a very unfavorable spot for a team to be caught in the middle of. Texas still has time for their play to determine the strategy though, and if things don't improve over the next few weeks, selling without a complete fire sale seems likely.

The biggest trade candidates this time of year are the half season rentals who are going to hit free agency this winter no matter where they play the second half of the year.

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When it comes to rentals, the Rangers have one of the most obvious ones in the starting rotation, and he is having one of the best seasons of his career.

Ranking the top-50 players who could be dealt at the deadline, Jeff Passan of ESPN put Texas starting pitcher Tyler Mahle at No. 24. Though Passan gave it just a 30 percent chance that the Rangers actually trade the 30-year-old, it could make a lot of sense.

After finally returning full-time this season from Tommy John surgery in 2023, Mahle had pitched to a brilliant 2.34 ERA and 1.130 WHIP before hitting the injured list last week with shoulder fatigue.

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Right now, there is no reason to think it's a serious injury for Mahle that would keep him from being traded, however he is going to be a free agent regardless this offseason.

There are tons of contenders who would be willing to ship a significant return to the Rangers in exchange for quality starting pitching.

In terms of possible fits, Passan named the Toronto Blue Jays, San Diego Padres, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago Cubs.

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If Texas starts to play some better baseball over the next month before the deadline, this likely becomes a moot point and they should hold onto Mahle in hopes of contending.

However, if things don't improve or even get worse, keep an eye on the rumors surrounding the right-hander to start to heat up.

For more Rangers news, head over to Rangers On SI.