How 5 former Texas Rangers are doing with their new teams

As is par for the rebuilding course, the 2022 Texas Rangers look quite a bit different than their 2021 predecessors when it comes to roster construction. The additions of Corey Seager, Marcus Semien, Jon Gray, Kole Calhoun, Brad Miller, Martin Perez, Mitch Garver and Garrett Richards alone count for nearly one-third of the roster in 2022, all players who weren’t here in 2021.

With so much turnover, however, comes the reality of former regulars for the Texas Rangers donning other uniforms across baseball. Let’s look at five prominent former Rangers from 2021 and how they’re doing on their new clubs in 2022.

How 5 former Texas Rangers are performing with their new clubs

5. Isiah Kiner-Falefa

First traded to the Minnesota Twins for Mitch Garver before being flipped to the Yankees, IKF is having a solid season in pinstripes thus far. His .277/.321/.658 triple slash is roughly in line with his career numbers at the plate, while mainly spending time at shortstop with New York.

You’re never going to get above-average production from Kiner-Falefa, but you’ll get a hard-working, versatile player who gives his all day in and day out. He’s a stopgap option for a team looking to plug a hole like the Yankees. But if the opportunity presents itself to upgrade (Corey Seager), you go for it.

And that’s exactly what the Rangers did.

How 5 former Texas Rangers are performing with their new clubs

4. Jordan Lyles

Jordan Lyles is the kind of player who somehow keeps landing jobs on professional ballclubs, yet rarely finds real success. He does have value, though: eating starts and innings in a rotation.

He’s doing just that for the Baltimore Orioles in 2022, with a 4.38 ERA in seven starts thus far. That ERA figure is actually an improvement over the one he sported with the Texas Rangers in 2021, an unsightly 5.15.

Not to be lost in that high ERA was a career-high 180 innings pitched for the Rangers last year. That kind of dependability and durability isn’t common in baseball these days, and though Lyles isn’t missed in Arlington by any stretch, that kind of production can be at times during a long season.

How 5 former Texas Rangers are performing with their new clubs

3. Kyle Gibson

The Texas Rangers managed to turn Kyle Gibson into an ace during the first half of 2021, en route to his first career All-Star appearance last season. After being traded to the Phillies at last July’s deadline, he hasn’t been able to repeat his Arlington success, though he’s been solid.

In seven 2022 starts, “Gibby” has a 4.10 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP, figures which are slightly better than his career stats, but far below his first half last season, which saw Gibson with a 2.87 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 19 first-half starts.

Texas was right to trade the veteran right-hander while his value would be higher than it ever was before and ever will be going forward.

How 5 former Texas Rangers are performing with their new clubs

2. Jose Trevino

A fan favorite in Texas, Jose Trevino was dealt to the Yankees just before the start of the 2022 season as the Rangers already had Jonah Heim and Mitch Garver in-house at the catcher position.

Trevy has never been known for his bat, and his .470 OPS in 47 at-bats so far this season reflect such a thing. But the veteran catcher provides value in other areas, most notably his leadership and pitch-framing skills, both of which are also important attributes in the fabric of the game.

Jonah Heim and Mitch Garver are also strong defenders like Trevino, but both are hitting far better than Jose in 2022, which is significant because having catchers that can both hit and play their position well is a true asset for any big league team.

Trevino isn’t more than a backup or platoon option on the diamond, but he’s a great clubhouse guy.