Re-grading the Texas Rangers’ 2021 off-season one year later

When there’s no baseball to look forward to, the only thing we can do is look back at what’s happened. It’s our sad reality as we wait for MLB and the MLBPA to reach a CBA so that the Texas Rangers (and everyone else) can finally report for the 2022 season!

But while we wait for that fateful day, let’s take a trip down memory lane (albeit a relatively recent one) to last off-season, the 2021 off-season.

2021 saw the Texas Rangers make a few notable transactions as they were clearly gearing up for a rebuild. None of them were earth-shattering, by any means, but it’s still a fun exercise to look back at just how much the moves they made worked (or didn’t).

Let’s start with arguably the most significant transaction of last winter.

Re-grading the Texas Rangers’ 2021 off-season a year later

Acquiring 1B Nathaniel Lowe from the Tampa Bay Rays

Anytime you trade with the Rays, it’s important to realize how many of those deals they win. But the Nathaniel Lowe trade to Texas in December 2020 looks balanced to me.

Lowe was really solid in 2021 for the Rangers, with 18 homers and a .772 OPS as he filled a void for what was previously a revolving door position for so many years. Barring any Matt Olson trade or something of the like, he’s poised to return as the starting first baseman again in 2022 and going forward.

This was a move made with the future in mind, and it definitely paid off right away. Lowe will never be a superstar or even one of the five best players at his position, but slow and steady wins the race as they say, and Lowe has proven himself more than capable of being a steadying presence with the Texas Rangers.

Grade: B+