Could Kris Bryant’s loss be Texas Rangers’ gain? The case for, against adding ex-MVP.
Kris Bryant challenged one of the most chicken things a baseball team can do, keeping a player in the minors just long enough to cost him a year of service time, and he lost.
Bryant can’t become a free agent until after the 2021 season. His nine-figure payday is on hold, barring a contract extension with the Chicago Cubs.
They certainly can afford it, but they also have a farm system decimated by trades and a window to contend that isn’t as wide open as it was only a few seasons ago.
Bryant plays third base.
Though the Texas Rangers signed Todd Frazier to be their third baseman in 2020, they are still seeking ways to upgrade the roster.
Bryant, the 2016 National League MVP and the owner of a .901 career OPS, would be an upgrade.
Connect the dots, people. (Waiting ... Waiting ... Pencils down.)
Now, let’s ponder if the Rangers should attempt to trade for Bryant.
The first word that comes to mind is, absolutely.
Bryant at third would push Frazier to first, at worst, in a platoon with Ronald Guzman. Bryant would be the right-handed bat the middle of the lineup needs, and placing him back-to-back with Las Vegas homey Joey Gallo would be a nightmare scenario for opposing pitchers.
Bryant is still eligible for arbitration, albeit it at a high figure, but still wouldn’t be as costly monetarily as, say, two seasons of Anthony Rendon’s seven-year, $245-million deal with the Los Angeles Angels.
Multiple top prospects would go to the Cubs, but there’s another draft and international signing period this year.
The Rangers, meanwhile, appear to be more in the mode of going for it than rebuilding. Their failed pursuit of Rendon and the acquisitions of Corey Kluber, Kyle Gibson, Jordan Lyles, Robinson Chirinos and Frazier aren’t moves of a rebuilding club.
If they don’t contend this season, the Rangers will have him around for another go-round in 2021.
For those waiting for the but, here it comes. Collectively, it’s pretty big but.
There are no guarantees Bryant would sign an extension with the Rangers or re-sign with them as a free agent. Their sense the entire offseason has been that Bryant, a Scott Boras client, will test the market.
This is a fairly large concern.
There are no guarantees that Bryant would get them in the postseason in either 2020 or 2021. Mike Minor can become a free agent after this season. So can Kluber if the Rangers decide to not pick up the club option on his deal.
Budget constraints were among the things that kept the Rangers from signing Nicholas Castellanos. Bryant will make $18.6 million this season. The Rangers should offer extensions to Minor and Gallo.
Yes, the $21 million being paid to Shin-Soo Choo comes off the books next season, but $21 million only goes so far.
While the Rangers’ farm system is better today than it was when they started to overhaul it in 2018, it’s not one of the game’s best.
They have only two Top 100 prospects in the latest Baseball America rankings, and both just eked into the last few spots — Josh Jung at 93 and Sam Huff at 99. Their top two pitching prospects (Hans Crouse and Cole Winn) worked at Low A Hickory in 2019.
Could they entice the Cubs with prospects? Sure, but it would be a massive haul.
The owners have instructed Daniels to build a long-term winner, and depleting the farm system now would take away from that.
So, that’s the bulk of the case. There’s probably more. Much of this also applies to a potential deal for Nolan Arenado, who is owed $234 million over the next seven seasons by the Colorado Rockies and can opt out after 2021.
(There’s to some talk of the Cubs and Rockies swapping Bryant and Arenado.)
Pursuing either third baseman comes down to winning now and damaging the farm system or trying to contend with what the Rangers already have and supplementing with prospects in future seasons.
As enticing as the first one is, bet on the second.
This story was originally published January 29, 2020 at 4:04 PM.
