Report: Pedro Strop decision between Texas Rangers, Miami Marlins

Per a report on Wednesday night, Pedro Strop has narrowed down his free agency to two teams, the Texas Rangers and the Miami Marlins.

The Texas Rangers are reportedly one of the final two options for reliever Pedro Strop, who looks to be near a free agent decision. Hector Gomez, who covers baseball from the Dominican Republic tweeted out Wednesday night that Strop had narrowed his decision to two teams, one being the Rangers and the other being the Miami Marlins.

Strop, as many fans will remember, was once a part of the Rangers organization before landing with the Orioles and subsequently with the Cubs. In Chicago, he carved out an important role for himself emerging as one of the better relievers in baseball for the six and a half years he spent with the NL club.

The 34-year old struggled in 2019 posting a 4.97 ERA and 4.53 FIP across 50 relief appearances. That drop-off is concerning, but in the seasons prior, Strop was as solid as they come. Even with the poor 2019 numbers factored in, Strop posted a 2.90 ERA in his time with the Cubs with a K/9 rate of 10.3 through 411 total appearances. Throughout his career, Strop has racked up 501.1 innings of work to the tune of a 3.21 ERA and a  1.159 career WHIP.

For Texas, Strop would represent a relief upgrade that could provide some help in the back end of the bullpen. At this time Jose Leclerc seems locked into the closer role but beyond that, the bullpen still has some question marks. Rafael Montero had a breakout year in 2019 and looks set to play a big role and Jesse Chavez will likely have an impact as a multi-inning guy, but the Rangers lack impact relief besides Leclerc. Adding a player like Strop would create more confidence in the Rangers late inning options especially if he can return to production similar to that pre-2019.

This feels like a signing Texas will make with Strop opting to return to Arlington rather than join the Marlins. Hector Gomez went as far to agree with a reply from a follower that suggested he would probably end up with the Rangers. We could see some movement on the Pedro Strop front within the next few days and it likely will be a one-year deal if something gets done. He shouldn’t command enough money to have an impact on any other moves either with the Rangers still in the mix for free agent Nick Castellanos as well as showing interest in trading for Rockies’ third baseman, Nolan Arenado.