Texas Rangers

The Texas Rangers and Chicago White Sox have reportedly "engaged in recent discussions" regarding star pitcher Dylan Cease, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic.

According to that report, the White Sox's "desired return" is in "the range of these three players, if not them specifically: utility man Ezequiel Durán and pitching prospects Brock Porter and Jack Leiter."

Cease, 28, is an intriguing target for teams like the Rangers for two main reasons.

One, he's very good. He finished the 2023 season with a 7-9 record, 4.58 ERA, 1.41 WHIP and 214 strikeouts in 177 innings, making 33 starts. It was his third straight season with over 200 strikeouts and arguably something of a down year by the standards he's set—his career ERA (3.83) and WHIP (1.30) are better than the marks he posted last season, and he was the AL Cy Young runner-up in 2022.

Two, Cease has two more years of club control and will make just $8 million in the 2024 season before entering arbitration one more time ahead of the 2025 campaign. As Rosenthal noted, that might make him more intriguing than a player like Jordan Montgomery, who remains available in free agency and was a key figure for the Rangers' run to a World Series title last season.

By adding Cease, the team could eventually have a rotation of him, Nathan Eovaldi, Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Tyler Mahle, once the latter three return from injury. Until then, however, the rotation is looking rough.

So it didn't come as a major surprise when Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News reported on Tuesday that "White Sox scouts have descended in droves upon Rangers camp this week," a clear indication that the two sides were discussing a potential Cease trade.

But he won't come cheap. Porter is the No. 4 prospect in the Rangers' farm system, according to MLB.com's rankings, and the No. 88 overall prospect in baseball. And Leiter is considered the team's No. 8 overall prospect.

So would the Rangers rather give up talented young prospects while maintaining more payroll, or splash the cash on a pitcher like Montgomery while keeping their farm system stocked?

For now, it appears the answer is the former.

Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager underwent surgery to repair a left sports hernia, and the team is hopeful he will be ready for Opening Day.

Rangers general manager Chris Young spoke with reporters on the matter Tuesday. Jeff Wilson of Rangers Today provided more details.

Seager, the reigning World Series MVP, just hit .327 (1.013 OPS) alongside 33 home runs, 96 RBI and an American League-high 42 doubles for the Rangers despite missing 43 games largely due to hamstring and thumb injuries.

Seager was sensational in the playoffs, hitting .318 with six homers, 12 RBI and 18 runs in 17 games. Three of his six home runs occurred in the Rangers' five-game World Series victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Needless to say, the reigning American League MVP runner-up is an invaluable member of the Rangers, who would obviously love to have him back for the beginning of the season. Texas begins its World Series title defense on March 28 at home versus the Chicago Cubs.

If the star isn't available for Opening Day, then Texas has two shortstop options in Ezequiel Duran and Josh H. Smith, both of whom filled in for Seager at times last season.

The Texas Rangers will get quite the midseason boost in the quest to repeat as World Series Champions.

The team will await the respective returns of starting pitchers Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer in 2024, and the timeline for that is projected to be around midseason, per ESPN.

deGrom confirmed that he and Scherzer expect to be re-joining the team around the trade deadline at the Rangers fanfest celebration and said that he is feeling pretty healthy.

"My arm's feeling really good," deGrom said, per ESPN. "It's just what is smart. You don't want to push it because you want to continue to pitch here for the next however many years. So that's where we've got to kind of take a look at what is the best plan moving forward, whenever that time comes."

Scherzer said that he had been able to have a successful initial recovery period following his offseason surgery to remove a herniated disc in his lower back.

"Now it's just in the stage of just building back up of where I can get back into it and at the same time [figuring out] how to keep the arm primed as you're navigating something where the biggest concerns are bending, lifting, twisting," Scherzer said.

Scherzer was able to make it through the Rangers World Series run in 2023. deGrom, on the other hand, wasn't as lucky. He injured his elbow in April and underwent Tommy John surgery, ending his season.

The two hurlers will likely have at least some adjustment period after returning, but the high ceiling potential for each is worth the wait. deGrom is a two-time Cy Young winner, four time All-Star and possesses a career ERA of 2.53 and a 84-57 record.

Sherzer has three Cy Young award's, eight All-Star nods and a record of 214-108 with a 3.15 ERA. While both are in the later stages of their careers, they still will be excellent rotation pieces for this talented Rangers team.

Texas will need to navigate a significant portion of the season without the dynamic starters but the duos imminent return sets the Rangers up to be a dangerous force come the postseason.

David Robertson is joining the Texas Rangers, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.

According to Passan, the right-handed reliever agreed to a one-year contract "in the $11-12 million range" pending his physical.

Robertson spent last season with the New York Mets before he was traded midseason to the Miami Marlins, notching 78 strikeouts, a 3.03 ERA and 18 saves on the year. The 15-year veteran has 175 saves in his career.

Since coming into the league in 2008, Robertson has had two stints with the New York Yankees from 2008 to 2014 and 2017 to 2018 with three seasons with the Chicago White Sox in between. He established himself as one of the best closers in baseball, but faced a setback in 2019 when he underwent Tommy John surgery, keeping him off the mound until 2021.

Since 2021, he has played for six different teams: The Tampa Bay Rays, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies, Mets, Marlins and now Rangers.

The Rangers were seeking more depth in the bullpen with Aroldis Chapman and Will Smith departing, and Robertson certainly fits that bill. Texas also returns Josh Sborz and Jose Leclerc in the bullpen.

The Rangers are coming off a World Series victory, beating the Arizona Diamondbacks where they relied on both Chapman and Smith, and they're looking to count on Robertson to help fill the void.

The market for free agent relief pitcher Héctor Neris appears to be heating up.

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reported that Neris' market is "becoming active" and that the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers are the current frontrunners to sign him.

Neris had a breakout 2023 with the Houston Astros, earning a career-best 1.71 ERA in 71 appearance and recording 77 strikeouts. The 34-year-old is entering his 11th MLB season and has a career ERA of 3.24 and helped the Astros win the 2022 World Series.

His tenure with the Astros has been resurgent, as he had a 2.69 ERA in his two seasons with the team after posting a 3.42 ERA in eight seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies. He is one of the best right-handed relievers available on the market and the fit with either Texas or New York makes sense.

The Rangers are defending World Series champions and possess a solid core and a strong pitching staff. Texas remains a real threat in the AL West and bolstering the bullpen depth could be huge for a team looking to win the division for the first time since 2016 and make another run at a championship.

The New York Yankees are looking to go all in in 2024 after acquiring slugging outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres. The lineup is loaded with the likes of Soto and Aaron Judge and the rotation is headlined by reigning Cy Young-winner Gerrit Cole.

However, the AL East is a very talented division with teams like the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays having young cores and the Tampa Bay Rays and Boston Red Sox being threats as well. Adding Neris could give the Yankees the push the franchise needs after missing the postseason for the first time since 2016 last year.

Jordan Montgomery could be eyeing a return to the Texas Rangers rather than reuniting with his former team, the New York Yankees, per NJ.com's Randy Miller.

According to Miller, the free agent pitcher would prefer to stay with the Rangers after winning the World Series with them in 2023, though Montgomery is the Yankees' first choice.

"The person with knowledge of the Yankees' thinking says Montgomery is the Yankees' first choice to upgrade the rotation, but doubts a reunion will happen because Montgomery prefers to return to the Rangers after their first world championship in 2023," Miller wrote. "Montgomery was a key component in Texas' run through the postseason, and bonded with his teammates there."

A person with knowledge of the situation told Miller that after spending the 2023 season with Texas, Montgomery's first choice is the Rangers.

"I'm told that Montgomery's first choice is the Rangers," the person said. "He loves Texas. That's really where he wants to go."

Montgomery, who is coming off a one-year $10 million contract, has yet to sign a new deal as his side looks for a larger figure. Per Miller, Montgomery's agent, Scott Boras, wants more than the six-year, $162 million deal that Carlos Rodon signed last offseason.

Last season, Montgomery had a 10-11 record in 32 starts, notching a 3.20 ERA, a 4.1 WAR and 166 strikeouts in 188.2 innings pitched.

Just a few weeks ago, the Yankees missed out on adding Yoshinobu Yamato, who ultimately landed with the Los Angeles Dodgers despite a lofty $300 million offer from New York. Now, it seems the Yankees could be in danger of missing out on another pitcher.

Miller noted a handful of other issues New York could face when it comes to free agent pitchers as well. He said the Yankees won't be able to land Blake Snell unless his agent lowers the asking price, they have no interest in left-hander Shota Imanaga and won't be able to sign Chicago White Sox right-hander Dylan Cease and Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Corbin Burnes because of their contract demands.

With the possible threat of not signing any big-name free agents before spring training, the Yankees could be heading into the season with a scarcity in starting pitchers.

New York is looking to return to glory and reach the World Series for the first time since the 2009 win, but the Yankees will need to add some arms to the rotation to do so.