4 unheralded free agents the Texas Rangers should sign

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The New Year has now passed and the countdown to pitchers and catchers reporting is now on. The defending World Series champion Texas Rangers still could use at least one more starting pitcher, one or two bullpen arms, and a designated hitter. Texas this offseason has already lost Will Smith, Chris Stratton, Austin Hedges, and Mitch Garver in free agency. They have signed Kirby Yates and Tyler Mahle to major-league deals. Mahle recovering from Tommy John will not be ready till at least the second half. Texas also lost Max Scherzer for at least the first half when he had back surgery last month. Texas needs starting rotation depth, bullpen depth, and a designated hitter that can replace Mitch Garver.

It is January but there are several high-quality free agents out there such as Josh Hader, Jordan Montgomery, Jorge Soler, and J.D. Martinez. It has been suggested by those who cover the Rangers that Texas is trying to not surpass the luxury tax at least at the beginnning of the season. That limits what Texas can do in free agency. Texas with a limited payroll still can improve the roster if they sign any of these four unheralded free agents that are still on the market.

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Free Agent #1- Justin Turner

The 39-year old veteran still is putting up solid numbers year-in and year-out. His batting average is not what it once was. He does not hit for as much power as he once did. He still is productive and a good veteran to have in the clubhouse. He also was long time teammates with Corey Seager in LA and comes with a winning pedigree. Turner in 2023 at 38-years old had a .276 batting average, 23 home runs, and 96 RBIs. He also had a .345 on-base percentage and an .800 OPS. Turner increased his home runs, RBIs, OPS, and games played from 2022 to 2023. He is clearly not showing signs of aging that are typically shown by players in the late 30's.

Turner would be a great add for the Texas Rangers because he can become their primary DH, but also sub for Josh Jung and Nathaniel Lowe on the corners and provide them days off if needed. Turner also is not going to command a large salary. His base salary last season was 8.3 million. He is likely going to command less than that on a one-year deal.

The Texas Rangers and Justin Turner would be a good match because Texas can guarantee playing time for Turner at DH and the corner infield positions. Turner can give Texas solid production at those positions at hopefully a price that Texas can afford.

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Free Agent #2- Joey Votto

At this point you might be sensing a pattern. Older players who are good clubhouse presences. Votto is another one of those players. He is very close to the end of his career, but is still wanting to play. I would not have a problem at all with Texas signing him to a contract to give him a chance to end his career playing for a winning team. Votto can still hit for power and he can still drive in runs. Votto will be entering the 2024 season healthy. He came into 2023 having had rotator cuff surgery near the end of the 2022 season. Whatever he has left in the tank will be shown out in 2024.

Votto in 2023 was a part-time player having missed the first two months recovering from shoulder surgery. He returned June 19th and played in just 65 games. He hit 14 home runs and had a .202 batting average and a .747 OPS. Texas would be signing Votto hoping that he can rediscover the form he had in 2021 when he hit 36 home runs, had a .266 batting average, and a .938 OPS. Votto being on a winning team and healthy might be able to find it again.

The potential future hall-of-famer is a great guy who loves playing the game. He would be a solid add to the lineup as a DH and sometime first baseman. If it does not work out then Texas can release Votto and let him retire or play out his career elsewhere. Then it can hand the DH job over to Wyatt Langford. Keep in mind that Texas is not looking for a long-term solution at DH. They are looking for a caretaker at the position until they feel like Langford is ready. That could be Opening Day, it could be the All-Star break, or not until 2025. If they did bring Votto in, it would allow Texas to delay adding him to the roster until he is determined to be ready.

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Free Agent #3- Shintaro Fujinami

This would be a free agent signing that would be a low risk-high reward type signing. The stuff is there for Fujinami, but the production is not. Just a glance at his statcast page and one would wonder why his ERA so high and he is not more successful. Fujinami in 2023 started the season in the Oakland A's rotation, but was then moved to the bullpen. He was traded midseason to the Baltimore Orioles and pitched in their bullpen for the Orioles. Fujinami had a 7-8 record overall with a 7.18 ERA, and struck out 83 in 79 innings pitched.

The 29-year old right-hander throws six pitches. He has a 100mph fastball that he throws more often than any other pitch. He also has a cutter, splitter, sweeper, slider and curveball. His best pitches are his fastball, splitter, and cutter. If he can refine those three pitches and just use those he might become a more dangerous pitcher. Fujinami had a .243 batting average against the fastball, a .239 batting average against the splitter, and a .175 batting average against the cutter. 78 of his 83 strikeouts came against those three pitches. They each had a higher than 25% whiff percentage.

It really feels like Fujinami in Texas Rangers camp under the tutelage of Mike Maddux and the pitching staff could reach a higher level than he could in Oakland or during a pennant race in Baltimore. It would be a signing that could pay off big if the Japanese right-hander can put it together. Texas can work Fujinami in slowly and see what he has. He is likely to sign for the amount of money Texas has. It also gives Texas a foot into the Japanese market and will maybe provide an opening for Texas to be able to sign Roki Sasaki next offseason when he could become a major league free agent.

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Free Agent #4- Matt Moore

I was on the Matt Moore train last offseason and continue to be on the side of bringing him back. Moore left to sign with the Angels in 2023. He had another solid season pitching in the bullpen for three different organizations. He started with the Angels and made 41 appearances and then was one of several players placed on waivers right before the deadline an claimed by Cleveland. He was then placed on waivers again and claimed by Miami and finished the season with the Marlins. He went from LA to Cleveland to Miami. He put up great numbers no matter the jersey he was wearing.

Moore in 2023 was 5-1 overall with a 2.77 ERA. He made 46 appearances and pitched 48 2/3 innings. Moore struck out 57 batters and walked just 14. He also only gave up seven home runs on the season. He was an effective bullpen pitcher in 2023 just as he was in 2022 for Texas. His strikeout rate slightly bumped up, but he cut his walk rate nearly in half from 12.5% to 6.9%.

Texas should sign him for the same reasons they should have never let him go. He is a good left-handed pitcher that can be used in a variety of roles. He can be an opener if need be and pitch multiple innings, he can be a middle reliever and bridge the gap between starter and setup pitchers, or he can pitch in the late innings and be used for multiple innings. He is what could be described a utility reliever. He is effective in whatever situation he is placed into. He is a reverse splits pitcher in that he is more effective against right-handed batters than left-handed batters.

It is January once again and Moore is still a free agent. Texas once again should sign the pitcher and bring him back once more. His price range would likely be in that $4-8 million dollar range. That should be an amount Texas can pay and is willing to pay for a good relief pitcher. It is not one of those signings that comes with trumpets blaring, but it will improve the bullpen and give Bochy more options throughout the game.

All four of these players come with some question marks, but they also have the potential to help improve this roster. The quality of the signing is better than the lack of a headline it may produce. This past season Texas signed Travis Jankowski and it was a non-descript press-release sent out that announced it. During the season he became one of the most valuable members of the roster. He even would finish out the World Series in right-field after Garcia went down with his oblique injury. The unheralded signings can sometimes have a major impact on a team during the long 162-game season.

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