Can the Texas Rangers benefit from the Los Angeles Angels miserable season?

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The deadline to add players to the roster and have them be playoff eligible is Thursday night by 11:59pm Eastern Time. I wrote about that earlier this month as far as players Texas should add internally to the 40-man roster to be eligible for the playoffs. Today we are going to look at players the Rangers could add from outside the organization. The Los Angeles Angels made news today when they placed these players on waivers.

BREAKING: The Los Angeles Angels have placed starter Lucas Giolito, relievers Matt Moore and Reynaldo López, and outfielders Hunter Renfroe and Randal Grichuk on waivers, sources tell ESPN. Huge potential playoff implications: All can be claimed by teams for free on Thursday.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 29, 2023

The Angels are not the only team placing several players on waivers. Several teams have players on waivers in order to free themselves of those contractual obligations for September. In the past teams would place players on what was revocable waivers. If they were claimed then the teams could work out a trade, the team would be handed the contract, or the team that placed the players on waivers could revoke their waiver and bring the player back.

Texas once traded for Pudge Rodriguez in 2009 through this waivers system. A huge trade in 2012 between the Dodgers and Red Sox was once completed in the old waivers trade days. Same with Justin Verlander being acquired by the Astros in 2017 at the waivers deadline.

In 2019 Major League Baseball decided to do away with the August 31st waivers trade deadline. They decided to just have one trade deadline at the beginning of August. Teams can still place players on waivers as the Angels are doing, but no trades can be worked out.

That takes us back to the Angels and other teams that have placed players on waivers. Texas despite their additions at the trade deadline still have holes on their roster. They could use one or two bullpen pitchers and a more reliable left-field option. Their starting rotation is fine, especially with Nathan Eovaldi expected back soon.

Ken Rosenthal also tweeted out names of players he had heard were also on waivers prior to the deadline.

Other players currently on waivers, per sources: Yankees OF Harrison Bader, Mets RHP Carlos Carrasco, White Sox RHP Mike Clevinger, Tigers RP José Cisnero. Claims awarded in reverse order of winning percentage as of Thursday. Teams on fringes of wild-card race likely to be most… https://t.co/1kKgeo48NZ
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) August 29, 2023

The problem Texas has is their success this season makes it less likely that they will be able to claim any of these players. The waivers are determined by win-loss record. The worst teams get to pick first and the best teams get to pick last. Right now Texas has the sixth-best record in the league. They would pick 24th out of 30 teams. It would not surprise me to see Texas make multiple claims and yet end up with no players. I do have a wishlist of players of these mentioned above that I think could help Texas.

Next: The players Texas should be looking to place a claim

4 Players the Texas Rangers should look at claiming

#4- Jose Cisneros

If they can not get anyone else Cisneros is not a bad consolation prize. He has not had a good season at all. Really it has been an awful summer as Cisnero has a 10+ ERA in both July and August. Before that he had been a somewhat reliable late inning option for the Tigers. In 2022 Cisnero has a 1.08 ERA in 28 appearances for Detroit.

The question for Texas becomes do they think he can rediscover that form form earlier in the season in the middle of a heated pennant race? Is he worth having to DFA a player to make room for him on the 40-man roster? The free agent to be would cost the Rangers next to nothing. He still has a good fastball that averages close to 96 mph and batters only hit .215 against the fastball. His issue has been with the sinker. It has been his least effective pitch as hitters have hit .472 against the pitch.

I could see Chris Young thinking that if they got him around Mike Maddux that maybe they can turn him around. I do not know if one month is enough time to really do that. If that is all they can get then go for it. This team does need more right-handed pitchers with swing and miss stuff and Cisnero does have that.

#3- Hunter Renfroe

Texas has had one of the best offenses in baseball for much of this season, but lately the lineup has fallen on hard times.. Prior to the All-Star break Texas led all of the majors in run scored. Since the break they rank 12th in the majors. One of the issues continues to be left-field production and the lack thereof. Once again in 2023 they are among the worst in the league in production from the left field spot. They rank 28th in home runs from the left field position with just nine and 25th in RBIs from left field with 51.

Hunter Renfroe could be that player who comes in and provides production in left field. Renfroe this season has a .239 batting average, with 18 home runs, 30 doubles, and 52 RBIs. He has a .725 OPS. The 31-year old Renfroe is not having the free-agent season I am sure he was hoping to have. He would probably come to Texas and potentially be energized by being in a playoff race. He does have recent experience playing in the playoffs. In 2020 he played for the Rays as they made their way to the World Series. In 2021 he was with the Boston Red Sox as they made their way to the American League Championship Series and a near upset of the Houston Astros.

The need for Texas is obviously pitching, but Renfroe would also fill a need.. He would be a veteran bat that still can hit with power and help out the middle of the order until Josh Jung returns in a few weeks.

#2- Matt Moore

The former Texas Ranger two times over is now one of the players that was placed on waivers by the Angels. Moore last offseason chose to sign a 7.55 million dollar one-year contract with the Angels. Texas now may get another opportunity to bring back the lefty for a third tour of duty for the team.

Moore this season has continued the momentum he built in the bullpen last season. He has a slightly higher ERA at 2.30 this season, but his strikeout to walk ratio is higher than last season. His batting average against is still really low at .196. He has had a really good season for the Angels.

I am sure Moore would welcome a trip back to Arlington and especially in the middle of a pennant race. He would likely take over the role Brock Burke has been pitching in a hybrid middle relief and late inning relief role. A pitcher like Moore is very valuable because he is plug and play. Bochy can insert him into any inning and know that Moore will go out there and likely succeed. Texas would be very luck to be able to claim Moore and be awarded his contract for the rest of this season. Who knows, maybe Texas will actually be able to resign him this time.

#1 Reynaldo Lopez

If Lopez is claimed he will be playing for his third organization this season. He started the season in Chicago with the White Sox, was traded around the deadline with Lucas Giolito to the Angels, and is now awaiting word on which contender will be claiming him to finish out the season. The reason he will pitch for this third organization is because he is highly sought after by many teams.

Lopez is a right-handed reliever who primarily relies on a 98.3mph four-seam fastball that hitters have a .202 batting average against. In 53 2/3 innings pitched he has 71 strikeouts and 38 were on the fastball. He also has an 88mph slider that generates a tremendous whiff rate at 39.2%. He does not really close out games that often, but he does pitch in the late innings whether it was for the White Sox or Angels.

Lopez would fill a definite need for Texas. It would give them that extra power reliever that this team has needed. It would allow Will Smith to pitch in a more situational role rather than in the late innings. Bochy could use Lopez in the 8th inning and then use a combination of Leclerc, Stratton, Sborz, or Burke in the 7th. It would help them be able to close out more of these close games in September and hopefully beyond.

The results of these waiver claims should become known by Thursday afternoon or evening. They will be processed before the deadline and so Texas should know on their off day if they won any of the waiver claims and who to make room on the roster for. If they do receive a player they would be postseason eligible. Lets cross our fingers and hope that maybe Texas can take advantage of this horrible season from the Angels and be able to take one of their players to the playoffs.