The Texas Rangers appear to be interested in pursuing Shohei Ohtani. According to ESPN, the Rangers were among the teams that had abandoned their efforts to sign him after initially showing interest in the two-way superstar. The Rangers were considered a possible landing spot after spending hundreds of millions of dollars in the previous two offseasons to upgrade their offense, signing shortstop Corey Seager and second baseman Marcus Semien, as well as starting pitcher Jacob deGrom. Last month, the Rangers won the World Series for the first time in franchise history.
Furthermore, the Rangers lack a logical candidate to be an everyday designated hitter, which is seen as a necessity for Ohtani, who can only hit in 2024 due to surgery on his torn UCL earlier this year. According to his representatives, he plans to return to pitching and hitting in 2025.
When asked about the Ohtani rumors, Rangers general manager Chris Young told reporters on Thursday that if the team needed financial resources to pursue a player, he could make the case to team owner Ray Davis. However, according to Spotrac.com, the Rangers have already committed $166.75 million to eight players through 2024. Furthermore, the Rangers’ television contract for 2024 is in jeopardy because Diamond Sports Group, which manages the Bally networks, is in bankruptcy and may drop some of its partners for next season in order to clear its balance sheet.
In addition to a clear need for a consistent closer, the Rangers are looking for more bullpen arms and at least one more starter.
Ohtani finished 2023 with a slash line of.304/.412/.654/1.066, 44 home runs, and 95 RBI, leading the American League in home runs. He was 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA, 167 strikeouts, and 55 walks as a pitcher.
According to ESPN, the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays, and Los Angeles Angels are among the teams still interested in signing Ohtani. Along with the Rangers, the Boston Red Sox and the New York Mets appear to have shifted their focus.
