Texas Rangers: Adrian Beltre likely to stay through trade deadline

As trade season is playing out, it seems Adrian Beltre will remain with the Texas Rangers through July 31st. Beltre staying is for the best.

Adrian Beltre trade news has surfaced; however, there is not much substance to any of it. At first, the Philadelphia Phillies were said to be interested in him. Everyone seems to be eyeing a Beltre to Boston type move, but that isn’t gaining any momentum. Of course, Beltre first said he’d like to stay with the Texas Rangers, but more recently stated he would consider waiving his no trade clause if he could go to a contender.

Again, there is no substance to any of it–just rumors and opinions. Even Beltre can’t seem to make up his mind as to how and where he wants to spend his final months of the season. Truthfully, it seems he would have no problem with staying in Texas.

As for the perspective of the Texas Rangers…

They don’t seem overly committed to trading him or keeping him. On one hand, it would make sense to trade a 39-year-old that can clearly still hit and is playing on an expiring contract. On the other hand, Beltre means so much to the team and its fans that it certainly wouldn’t hurt if they kept him around. I don’t think anyone would take issue if the future Hall of Famer stuck around and retired with the Rangers.

Major League Baseball is a business, right? If Texas has a chance to move Beltre in order to improve the organization’s future then they should move him, right?

That’s how it seemed initially; however, it appears the Rangers have realized two things while tentatively shopping Adrian Beltre. First off, they’ve realized keeping him would help with team morale and it would benefit attendance and ratings by retaining a fan favorite. Secondly, they’ve realized there isn’t much demand for Beltre in the trade market.

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Let’s face it, no team is in desperate need of a third baseman. Much less one that is 39 years of age and splitting time between the field and DH. Yes, the Manny Machado trade brings clarity to the market, but that has very little impact on Beltre. The few teams that are in the market for a third baseman are looking at younger options. Frankly, Beltre is likely third or fourth on the lists of those teams.

At this point, the likelihood of the Texas Rangers trading Adrian Beltre is close to 0%. Him staying in Texas is for the best. Everybody loves Beltre and it would be debilitating to see him go. The Rangers won’t be missing out on any game-changing prospect if they keep him. My only concern is in regard to Jurickson Profar.

Profar could be traded over the next 12 days. It would be ideal if the Rangers could find a permanent position for the 25-year-old talent. The problem is the quickest way to doing so would be moving Beltre. Texas isn’t going to trade Rougned Odor and little has been said about the possibility of trading Elvis Andrus.

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Third base is the clearest path for Profar, but even that path is a bit foggy. Keeping Beltre for the remainder of the year will simply keep Profar in his current super utility role. It’s when the offseason hits that the Texas Rangers will really have to determine a permanent solution for Profar. Again, Adrian Beltre will be a free agent at the season’s end. Time will tell if the Rangers bring Beltre back for 2019, but the next 12 days have to play out first.