Could Rangers reunite with World Series hero after awful 2024 campaign?

In one of the most awkward and unfortunate developments in the game today, the Arizona Diamondbacks are desperately trying to get Jordan Montgomery and his awful contract off of their books. It's been a doomed relationship from the start between the Snakes and Montgomery, but it seems more and more likely that he'll end up getting moved prior to the start of the 2025 season. Is it possible the Texas Rangers could be a destination?

The 32-year-old has a long track record of success at the big-league level, and it's a bit surprising to see the Diamondbacks so willing to cut bait after one down year on the mound. Sure, he was one of the most unproductive starters in the game, but he was just one year removed from a 3.20 ERA across 32 starts.

Plus, in Texas, Montgomery is a well-known commodity, as he spent the second half of the 2023 season leading the Rangers to a postseason berth and eventually a World Series Championship.

Jordan Montgomery, Rangers reunion makes a ton of sense

Things just didn't work out for Montgomery in 2024. The southpaw made 21 starts (and four relief appearances) and somehow finished with an 8-7 record along the way. Across 117 innings of work, he posted a ghastly 6.23 ERA, 4.48 FIP and 67 ERA+. His strikeouts dipped, his walks skyrocketed, and he seemingly forgot how to keep runners off the bases.

Now that he's picked up his player option for the 2025 campaign, he's one of the most expensive one-year rentals around, but what makes him so intriguing is the fact that he's a rental. Even if the Rangers did pull off a trade to bring him back to Arlington, he can easily be cut if things aren't working out after a few months of the experiment.

Still, Montgomery's track record suggests that whatever he went through this past season was an outlier. His recent success as a member of the Rangers shows that there was a solid match between the two a few years back, so there's nothing wrong with looking to capture the magic a second time around.

Since he's got such an ugly contract ($22.5 million), it's reasonable to assume that Montgomery could be had for pennies on the dollar in trade talks, especially if the Rangers are willing to eat a good portion of the money he's owed for the 2025 campaign. Montgomery wouldn't cost much in the way of prospect capital, and the necessary return from the Rangers' side only would get smaller the more money they agreed to take on.

The Rangers have been extremely busy this offseason, upgrading a ton of spots on their roster. The lineup could use another piece, their bullpen is getting stronger by the day, and their rotation could certainly use one more arm. Montgomery is a familiar asset and his recent success with the club may be just enough to convince them to swing a second deal for the left-handed veteran.