HOUSTON, TX – AUGUST 02: Texas Rangers designated hitter Joc Pederson (3) tries to get on first base in the top of the first inning during the MLB game between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros on August 2, 2026 at Daikin Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Icon Sportswire/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
HOUSTON — As the trade deadline arrives, of this much we are certain: The Rangers are due for retooling. That’s what we’ll call it, at least. Saying “rebuild” gives Chris Young hives.
The point, though, is that this version of the Rangers, built around two $30 million players, has run its course. They bought themselves a World Series, didn’t invest more dollars in it and let the farm system erode. Three years of .500 baseball is rewarding for nobody. Fans get bored. Management gets disappointed. Ownership gets frustrated about dollars seemingly wasted.
It needs to be retooled. Retooled means reshuffling and trying again next year; rebuilding means kicking the baseball years into the future.
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It just doesn’t have to be retooled in a day.
They’ve got a whole winter to do it. Maybe the spring, too. Sounds like there may be plenty of free time then, as well. Especially since the Dodgers got Tarik Skubal and, you know, that means the baseball business is broken and all that. And, well: A lockout looms.
Even after a disheartening 7-3 loss to Houston Sunday capped off a disastrous pre-deadline road trip, the Rangers don’t need to be motivated sellers on Monday. And, yeah, the trip was that bad.
“It went about as poorly as you could think of,” Joc Pederson said. “Everyone here is extremely frustrated. I can’t really think of a positive that came out of it.”
Forget the emotions that go with being swept by Houston and falling 2 ½ games back in the AL West. They’ve got a puncher’s chance in a division chock-full of mediocrities. They may get Josh Jung back in the next week and finally be fully healthy for a bit. They’ve got 19 straight games coming up against teams with losing records. There is a chance. Might be more hope than belief, but it is a chance. That chance, though, is slim enough that no realistic acquisition is going to dramatically improve it.
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On the other hand, what’s the impetus for trading away Jacob deGrom, Corey Seager and Pederson, all of whom have garnered at least moderate interest in the last week? Will the Rangers get real value for a 38-year-old dealing with a glute issue (deGrom), a guy with approximately $155 million left on his contract and a back issue (Seager) or a rental (Pederson)? Would whatever value they get be more important to the retooling process or to Ray Davis’ bottom line? Would it bring enough value for the near-term future to punt on the declining, but still real, chance at making the playoffs with 50 games to go?
That’s the backdrop for Monday. And it’s why the Rangers should approach the final hours leading up to the 5 p.m. CT deadline like an ideal spouse. They should be attentive listeners.
Houston Astros’ Taylor Trammell, right, scores as Texas Rangers catcher Austin Wynns handles the throw during the seventh inning of a baseball game Sunday, Aug. 2, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)
David J. Phillip/AP Photo/David J. Phillip
Teams are — and will — call about the trio of veterans. As teams start making more moves, others react. GMs will always say they don’t react to other teams’ moves, but invariably they do. The Rays acquired Freddy Peralta for their rotation from the New York Mets on Sunday. Think the Yankees and Red Sox are just gonna sit around? The Dodgers — shockingly, shockingly, we say in full sarcasm — acquired Skubal. The Braves and Brewers won’t respond?
Most of those teams could use a shortstop. Some of them could use a starter. Anybody could use a bat like Pederson’s to bludgeon right-handed pitching. Arizona, where Pederson played in 2024, could use a DH.
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There will be more calls. Keep those phones charged, fellas.
They should be willing to move any or all of the three veterans mentioned, but they’ve got to have a definitive plan with clear boundaries. Which also means dropping the notion of making deals that allow them to compete this year while building toward next year. That’s more fantasy than reality. Ahab had a better shot against Moby Dick. The best chance this team has of winning this year is to keep it together and get healthy. End of story.
If the Rangers get offers of real value for deGrom, Seager or Pederson, they are worth acting upon, but only if the Rangers don’t have to bend to accommodate a deal. That’s not deal-making, that’s salary-dumping.
The alternative is to wait until winter. Maybe deGrom’s value would stabilize, even if he’d only be under guaranteed control for a year. While he has full no-trade protection, the assumption is a chance to pitch for Tampa Bay or Atlanta, much closer to his Florida home, might sway him to waive it. Seager gets full no-trade protection after the year and would likely take some convincing to accept a deal, adding some risk to the proposition. As for Pederson, who becomes a free agent, there would be nothing in return if the Rangers wait. The return would need to be either an advanced prospect who could slide into the Rangers’ top 12 or a controllable, viable major leaguer. Otherwise, he has more value to a Rangers team still in a playoff race.
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It’s not an ideal situation. It’s where the Rangers are, though, due to multiple mistakes at every level since the World Series win. But trading guys to dump salary and raising a white flag doesn’t read much like a plan about improving. It reads like one to save money. The plan is to retool and remain competitive.
Sometimes, it’s not the deals that define the trade deadline, but the vision. The Rangers should have clear eyes. The vision is that whether on Monday or in the winter, the ship needs to turn. Now, they just need to make sure they’ve got the discipline not to deviate from it.