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Texas Rangers add pitching prospect in deal with San Francisco Giants

By Travis Koch

ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 05: President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Jon Daniels of the Texas Rangers talks with the media after announcing the resignation of Manager Ron Washington at Globe Life Park in Arlington on September 5, 2014 in Arlington, Texas. Ron Washington informed the club that he has chosen to resign in order to turn his full attention to addressing an off-the-field personal matter. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
ARLINGTON, TX - SEPTEMBER 05: President of Baseball Operations and General Manager Jon Daniels of the Texas Rangers talks with the media after announcing the resignation of Manager Ron Washington at Globe Life Park in Arlington on September 5, 2014 in Arlington, Texas. Ron Washington informed the club that he has chosen to resign in order to turn his full attention to addressing an off-the-field personal matter. (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images) /
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In their first deal of the trade season, the Texas Rangers have acquired a pitching prospect, a veteran outfielder and a reliever from the San Francisco Giants.

The Texas Rangers have completed their first trade of this trade season. From the San Francisco Giants, the Rangers acquired veteran outfielder, Austin Jackson, MLB reliever, Cory Gearrin, and pitching prospect, Jason Bahr. The return consists of either cash or a player to be named later.

The deal is in line with each team’s strategy over the next three weeks (until the July 31st trade deadline). Texas intends to rake in as many prospects as possible and San Francisco intends to offload some salary in order to fall below the luxury tax.

The notable name in the trade is of course the prospect. Jason Bahr ranked as the 27th best prospect in the San Francisco Giants’ farm system. At 23 years old, Bahr is 6’5” tall and 190 lbs. Per his scouting report, he throws consistently in the low 90 mph-range and can touch 96 at times. He possesses great control, but he still needs to develop his secondary pitches.

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA – APRIL 03: Austin Jackson #16 of the San Francisco Giants bats against the Seattle Mariners at AT&T Park on April 3, 2018 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) /

Bahr was at the Class-A Advanced level with the Giants and that is the level the Texas Rangers will place him in their organization. At Class-A Advanced with the Giants this year, the right-hander went 2-0 with a 1.69 ERA over 16 innings pitched. He struck out 15 batters and walked only two over that span.

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The Rangers love his potential and feel he is perfect for where the organization currently stands and where they expect to stand over the next 2-3 years.

As for the other two players in the trade…

Austin Jackson is a long time big leaguer known for his outfield glove. He has not had a particularly good 2018 season, but he’s a nice add-on name in a trade deal. Jackson, a Dallas, TX native, doesn’t really seem to fit any immediate need for the Rangers. In all likelihood, he will replace Carlos Tocci as an improved defender and hitter off the Texas bench.

Lastly, Cory Gearrin is a 32-year-old reliever who pitched frequently for the Giants over the past few seasons. He’s appeared in 35 games in 2018, pitching to a 4.20 ERA. He will join the Texas Rangers bullpen right away as they head to Boston for a three-game series.

In order to clear roster space for Jackson and Gearrin, the Rangers have transferred relievers Tony Barnette and Matt Bush from the 10-day DL to the 60-day DL.

Next: Where does Cole Hamels' trade value stand?

Bigger trades will come; however this seems to be a good start. Texas got the player they wanted in Jason Bahr, along with a good clubhouse guy in Austin Jackson and a reliever to add depth to the pen in Cory Gearrin. Oh, and they lost no one for them, at least not yet.

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