Dream Texas Rangers bullpen for the 2024 season

The Texas Rangers had a historically bad bullpen in the regular season. They blew 33 saves and yet the team still managed 90 wins, a pretty remarkable feat. Bruce Bochy found a few guys he could rely on in the playoffs in Josh Sborz and Jose Leclerc. These two were particularly effective when the Rangers got a long outing from their starter. But throughout a long season, there will be some short outings from starters. Fatigue will also set in on guys like Sborz or Leclerc if they are the only ones Bochy can trust out of the bullpen. Regardless of how good those two are, the Rangers need more options. Here is a dream 2024 bullpen that will give the Rangers much more reliability across the board.

Andrew Heaney and Cody Bradford

First off, we have two guys who I think can be an asset to the bullpen in long relief in the event of a very short day from the starter. Those two in question would be Andrew Heaney and Cody Bradford. The Rangers will likely have a decision to make between Dane Dunning and Andrew Heaney for the starting rotation. With the way Dunning performed as a starter for most of the year, and how inconsistent Heaney could be at times, I think the nod goes to Dunning. That bumps Heaney to the bullpen and as a guy who's been a starter, he can provide a long relief outing in the event it is needed. He came in to provide two plus innings of relief a few times this season and generally did a good job.

Cody Bradford is a similar situation. He has a starter background and is a young guy who still has a lot of room to improve. He most notably provided three and two-thirds innings of shutout relief in Game 2 of the ALDS, giving me confidence, he can step into that long reliever role when the Rangers need it.