Texas Rangers: Predicting who gets dealt at the MLB Trade Deadline

The Big Fish: Lance Lynn

Lance Lynn isn’t just the big fish for the Rangers but he’s arguably the biggest fish across Major League Baseball. The right-hander is in the midst of yet another Cy Young caliber season and has been utterly dominant since the start of the season. His ERA is a minuscule 1.59 and his .155 batting average against is among the best in all of baseball. Add in that the righty is under contract through next season at a team-friendly $8 million and Lynn seems to have the ability and contract to make him fairly risk averse in this strange market.

Texas is going to ask a lot for the 33-year old as they should. While all indications are that teams will be hesitant to make big deals in a season of uncertainty, Lynn is the type of frontline starter that could catapult a number of contenders to the next level. Playing in the Rangers’ favor is that a number of the better teams across the league are in need of frontline starter help meaning they could generate a bit of a bidding war before Monday’s deadline.

It has to be said that Texas isn’t wholly convinced they want to move Lynn with hopes that he could front their rotation next season as they look to return to contention. The Rangers are going to get what they want in a deal if there’s a deal that gets done because they hold much of the leverage in negotiations.

Verdict: Trade

While I fully believe that the Rangers are open to keeping Lance Lynn for next season and aren’t just bluffing to drive up the price, I also think they realize that they have a player at career-high value on their hands. It’s unlikely that Lynn’s value will go up between now and next year and the Rangers are unlikely to be real contenders by next season. In the end, I think a contender decides to pony up the asking price for Lynn realizing that he’s a game changer when it comes to this postseason and next.