The Free Agency Signing the Rangers Should Be Quietly Celebrating

After more than 40 games, it’s clear that this quiet free-agent signing this offseason has been great for the team.

Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers made several free-agent signings to shore up the bullpen on the cheap this offseason.

It’s a crowded competition to determine which one was the best. Three have worked out for the Rangers heading into the next road trip, which starts on Friday at Houston — Jakob Junis, Tyler Alexander and Jalen Beeks.

All three have been excellent for Texas are key reasons why Texas has one of the best bullpens in baseball. But, this week, Junis distinguished himself in a way that showed off his consistency and his versatility.

Jakob Junis’ Great Start

Texas Rangers relief pitcher Jakob Junis. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

On Monday Texas scratched Nathan Eovaldi from his start with left side tightness. The Rangers were stuck. They did not have a starter on hand to take his place. So, they turned to Junis as their opener and he was excellent. He went 2.2 innings, allowed two hits and an earned run and struck out two. He took the loss only because the Rangers were shut out offensively and lost, 1-0.

The 33-year-old right-hander has excelled at everything Texas has thrown at him this season. He is 0-1 with a 1.89 ERA. He’s pitched in 16 games, converted all three save opportunities and recorded five holds. He’s only given up four earned runs and 10 hits in 19 innings. He has struck out nine, walked five and batters are hitting only .152 against him.

He’s coming off back-to-back seasons with a sub-3.00 ERA, including last season with Cleveland when he went 4-1 with a 2.97 ERA in 57 games, which was a career high. The big difference right now is the opponent batting average. He allowed a .257 OBA last season. If he maintains his current .152, that would be a career best by 50 points.

Alexander, a left-hander, has had a fine season. The former TCU star is back in the DFW area and is 1-0 with a 2.25 ERA in 19 games and 20 innings. He’s allowed more hits (23) and more earned runs (five) than Junis. But Alexander has a wider strikeout-walk ratio, with 15 strikeouts and five walks, and has two saves in two chances.

Beeks’ ERA is closing in on 3.00 after giving up a run to Arizona on Wednesday. He’s been a good left-handed matchup this season.  

The Rangers signed Junis to a one-year, $4 million contract that only counts $2.75 million on the books for luxury tax purposes. It also comes with a mutual option for $4 million in 2027. Junis is turning into a reliever that Texas should work to get on a longer-term deal and get away from the year-to-year offseason work it does each offseason. So far, Junis as proven to be worth the deal.