Choo says he doesn’t want trade from Rangers, but ...

Shin-Soo Choo has seen how the business side of baseball works.

He has been traded twice in his MLB career, and he experienced free agency in 2013.

He knows that deals like the one he agreed to with the Texas Rangers before the 2014 season can become a burden to the team that signed him.

In the off-season, the Rangers and Arizona Diamondbacks discussed a swap of his contract with the high-dollar contract of Zack Greinke. He said he understood where the Rangers were coming from.

He gets it.

He also doesn’t expect that the Rangers will find a deal for him ahead of the July 31 trade deadline because of the remaining money, more than $50 million, on his contract. And he doesn’t want to be traded.

However ...

“I don’t want to leave, but I want to win,” Choo said. “I don’t want to rebuild a team and stay here and lose and lose and lose.”

If that sounds familiar, it should. Choo’s teammate, Adrian Beltre, also wants a World Series title before he retires.

“We’re not playing for money,” Choo said. “We come from a different country. We love this game. That’s why we’re here. That’s why he’s still playing here. I don’t know how long my career has left, but I want a championship. That’s it.”

The Rangers entered the All-Star break in last place in the American League West at 41-56, 22 games behind the Houston Astros and 17 out of the wild-card race.

They are talking trades with contenders, manager Jon Daniels said Wednesday. Teams have called on Cole Hamels, who was better Friday but still allowed four runs in 6 1/3 innings, and the Rangers have told teams not to call on Beltre unless they plan to make a considerable offer.

Relievers Jake Diekman, Keone Kela and Jesse Chavez could also be dealt, with Kela perhaps having more value than any of the trade chips.

This story was originally published July 16, 2018 at 1:10 PM.