ARLINGTON -- The new year is a time for self reflection and improvement. Though they just won the World Series, the Rangers are no different, and they will enter 2024 looking to improve just like any other year.
Here are five New Year’s resolutions for the club in 2024.
1. Add more rotation depth
This isn’t a secret for anybody inside or outside the organization, but the Rangers are in desperate need of rotation depth, including top-end starters and back-of-the-rotation innings eaters. With Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and the newly signed Tyler Mahle all delayed until the second half of 2024, the Opening Day rotation is thin.
Currently, it looks like Nathan Eovaldi, Jon Gray, Dane Dunning, Andrew Heaney and Cody Bradford are the first five.
“I'm sure there'll be a number of NRIs that we sign to come in and compete if somebody goes down, and we'll see what else we do in free agency,” Rangers general manager Chris Young said via Zoom. “Again, pitching will remain a focus and we'll continue to look for any way to improve our club.”
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2. Be rested and healthy going into Spring Training -- and beyond
In 2023, starting pitchers such as deGrom, Eovaldi, Scherzer and Gray all landed on the injured list for varying lengths of time, while position players Corey Seager, Josh Jung, Adolis García and Jonah Heim all spent time on the IL in the second half.
deGrom (UCL) and Scherzer (herniated disk) are projected to miss the first half of the 2024 season, but the overall goal is to stay as consistently healthy as possible. Young said García is recovering well from an oblique injury sustained during the World Series, and he resumed his workouts prior to the holidays.
The rest of the roster should enter Spring Training healthy. The goal is to sustain that across an entire 162-game season.
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3. Add another bat to replace Mitch Garver
Garver signed with the Mariners for two years and $24 million on Christmas Eve, leaving the Rangers in need of both a backup catcher and a designated hitter.
Garver provided a ton of value despite his injury history, slashing .270/.370/.500 with an .870 OPS in 87 games between catcher and DH in 2023. Texas will need to replace that production this season.
The Rangers have a potential backup catcher in Minor Leaguer and former top prospect Sam Huff, a 25-year-old with big league experience, but veteran DH options like JD Martinez and Justin Turner remain on the market.
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4. Shore up the bench depth
Despite a solid starting lineup, especially if they add another bat, the Rangers will no doubt want to add depth throughout the roster.
Guys like Ezequiel Duran and Josh Smith -- or Minor Leaguers Jonathan Ornelas and Justin Foscue -- are versatile players that provide quality depth, but the Rangers succeeded in 2023 with veteran outfielders like Travis Jankowski and Robbie Grossman getting sporadic at-bats.
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5. Get contributions from Minor League pitchers
Whether or not the Rangers add another veteran starter, they will no doubt need innings from Triple-A pitchers at some point in the regular season. In 2023, Cody Bradford stepped up as a swingman throughout the regular season, and he even contributed major innings in the postseason run. Who will step up for Texas in '24?
Prospects Owen White (No. 8, per MLB Pipeline), Cole Winn (No. 28) and Zak Kent are on the 40-man roster and finished the 2023 season with Triple-A Round Rock. 2021 first-round Draft pick Jack Leiter (No. 5) seemed to take the next step at the end of the regular season with the Express, putting him in a prime position to make a big league appearance in '24.
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• The Hot Stove heated up going into the holidays, but there are still a number of free agents left on the board. Who are they? Find out here.
• Speaking of the Hot Stove, here are five major storylines as we enter the new year and await the start of Spring Training.
• Power Rankings are based on a number of variables, and the reigning World Series champions don’t top the list at the moment. Where does Texas rank? More here.
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