Texas Rangers Just Signaled Their Trade Deadline Intentions

The Texas Rangers are heading home from Houston after a six-game road trip. That may have said it all about their immediate future.

Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

A week ago, the Texas Rangers led the American League West by two games over the Seattle Mariners. After Sunday, they’re in serious trouble.

Texas fell to Houston, 7-3, on Sunday, wrapping up a poorly-timed 1-5 road trip, which included a five-game losing streak. It was enough to get Rangers manager Skip Schumaker ejected for one of the more dramatic tirades one will see in baseball. Pitching coach Justin Viele was ejected just before Schumaker was ejected.

After taking three out of four games from the Mariners in a series that ended last Monday, that appeared to be enough to convince president of baseball operations Chris Young to buy.

Now, The Rangers (55-57) come home 2.5 games behind the Astros (58-55) in the division. That doesn’t seem like much, but in an average division it’s a chasm. Now, Young has big decisions to make as the deadline approaches.

Sunday’s loss may have been the final signal as to the Rangers’ intentions at the trade deadline, which is 5 p.m. central time.

What Rangers Just Told Us About Trade Deadline

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Before the game, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic (subscription required) reported that the Rangers’ decisions to buy or sell might come down to Sunday’s game.

He reported that Texas hasn’t ruled anything out. That could mean the Rangers might keep the team intact and add a bit before Monday’s trade deadline or sell off some assets, especially those that have expiring deals.

The Rangers lost, 3-2. So now what?

Young faces a significant decision. The self-described ultra-competitive former player — who won a World Series ring with the Kansas City Royals as a player in 2015 — spoke before the Mariners series about wanting to give his team every chance to win. He just needed a signal. Everyone thought the end of the Mariners series was that signal. Press ahead and buy.

Now Young may have to press pause and stand pat. The Rangers have been a deeply inconsistent team all season. The team that surged into the All-Star break with one of the best records in baseball since late May and stumbled down the stretch of the season that allows Young to make final decisions about what his team looks like.

If there is a signal to be taken from this weekend, it’s that the Rangers would need to expend so much capital to improve their team that it’s unlikely Young does anything more than stand pat. Given the season and this final stretch, it’s the right call.