Texas Rangers 'Win' Trade Deadline, Vault in Power Rankings

The Texas Rangers were considered one of the major winners of the MLB trade deadline with a series of blockbuster moves.

Sometimes it’s not what a team does on the field that gets noticed. It’s what happens off.

That’s the case for the Texas Rangers, who were as bust as anyone before the trade deadline. The American League West leaders were in blockbuster mode, snagging ace Max Scherzer from the New York Mets, and the St. Louis Cardinals pitching duo of Jordan Montgomery and Chris Stratton.

Scherzer claimed his Texas debut Thursday, overcoming a shaking first inning with five scoreless frames in the Rangers’ 5-3 win over the Chicago White Sox. Montgomery has also joined the rotation, with former starter Martín Pérez being demoted the bullpen.

The flurry of activity – which included trading for catcher Austin Hedges – earned the Rangers a jump in the latest MLB Power Rankings from ESPN’s panel of baseball experts. Texas is up two spots to No. 3, leapfrogging the Tampa Bay Rays and Los Angeles Dodgers.

Per ESPN:

If they didn’t win the winter, they might have at least won the trade deadline. Or perhaps they won both, as the Rangers continue to show a flair for stealing headlines. With Scherzer and Jordan Montgomery now in the fold, there’s less pressure on Nathan Eovaldi to return from his injury and other starters can move down a notch in the rotation.

The reinforcements join as the Rangers are trying to hold off the two division squads that are also “all in” – the defending champion Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels. Texas general manager Chris Young called Houston the “team to beat,” especially after bringing back Justin Verlander. ESPN moved the Astros up to No. 4.

Texas probably needed the energy boost the new players should bring, considering it got swept by San Diego over the weekend on the heels of losing a series to the Astros before that. Holding off Houston for the division crown might come down to the two aforementioned pitching additions. The race in the AL West is just getting started.

As for the power rankings for rest of the AL West: Angels (14), Seattle Mariners (19) and Oakland Athletics (30).