3 Rangers on the 40-man roster who might not be around on Opening Day

The Rangers have already been fiddling with the 40-man roster to make room for offseason acquisitions. For instance, Texas DFA’d and then traded reliever Grant Anderson to clear a spot for Joc Pederson.

With the flurry of activity this winter and the team’s ambitions to return to the postseason, the club could very well shuffle more players off the 40-man in order to call in fresh recruits.

Rangers may have to make some tough cuts to the 40-man roster this spring

However, the Rangers are in a somewhat strange position. The team’s 40-man roster consists of 24 pitchers (including Josh Sborz, who could very well go on the 60-day IL and free up a spot when the season starts). Six of those pitchers were acquired this offseason, which could indicate that Texas, at least at the point of signing, saw them as a valuable piece of the squad. Additionally, most of the lineup is virtually untouchable, so we’re looking at only a handful of players who seem likely to get cut before Opening Day.

Cole Winn, RP

The Rangers’ first-round pick in 2018 hasn’t quite panned out. Cole Winn rocketed through the Minor Leagues once he made it to full-time ball. (He participated in a developmental league after being drafted and later sat through the COVID-cancelled season.) Since landing with Triple-A Round Rock, though, his career has largely stalled. In his third go-round at the level, he moved from the rotation to the bullpen, but even that shift hasn’t recaptured his once-vaunted status.

Winn got a taste of the Majors (17 ⅓ innings and a 7.79 ERA) in 2024, but his time is running out. He could very well be sent to Triple-A for a fifth straight season, utilizing his final option year. Meanwhile, prospects such as Abimelec Ortiz and Dane Acker would be vulnerable to (and possibly valuable for) Rule 5 Draft selection next winter.

Winn will quickly lose his value once his final option year is gone. It may be better for the Rangers to find a trade partner willing to take on this project so they can use this roster spot more wisely.

Jonathan Ornelas, INF

Yes, the Rangers did decide to protect Jonathan Ornelas from the Rule 5 Draft in 2022, but he hasn’t been a major part of the big league squad since then. In fact, his utility, one of his greatest assets, is duplicated by Ezequiel Durán and Josh Smith. The Rangers simply do not need another versatile bench player on the 26-man roster.

Instead, Texas could begin to look to the future of the outfield. Adolis García took a massive step back in 2024, and Leody Taveras’s usefulness as a fourth outfielder has started to run its course. Luckily, help is on the way. Dustin Harris is already on the 40-man roster, but prospects like Alejandro Osuna could push their way into the Majors this season. Opening a 40-man roster spot during Spring Training could pave their path.

Jon Gray, SP

It seems like a certainty that the Rangers will need to clear a rotation spot for Kumar Rocker at some point, and with a strong spring, he could break camp on the Opening Day roster. Texas doesn’t actually have to clear 40-man space in order for that to happen, since Rocker is on the 26-man roster already, but it seems likely that one of the entrenched starters could be on the move.

Nathan Eovaldi and Jacob deGrom are untouchable, and conversely, no one would likely touch Tyler Mahle until he has a few starts under his belt, given his history of injury. That leaves Jon Gray, Cody Bradford, and Dane Dunning as the rotation pieces most likely to be on the chopping block.

My inclination here is for Gray, who is in the final year of his contract and set to make $13 million. Although the Rangers’ payroll seems to be about $7 million below the luxury tax threshold, which was a major goal of theirs offseason, gaining more wiggle room could be beneficial if Texas finds itself in the playoff hunt and needs to make moves at the trade deadline.

This deal might not happen by Opening Day, though. Rocker will be on an innings limit as he works back from Tommy John surgery. He may be more valuable down the stretch, shifting the timeline for a starting pitching trade closer to July.