Jon Gray and Jonathan Ornelas may have just saved Rangers trade deadline and season

The Texas Rangers haven't had the best experience defending their World Series title from a season ago. As the trade deadline approaches, the team remains under .500 and the possibility of selling off certain pieces looms large. However, things may have changed a little bit on Tuesday night with the Chicago White Sox in town.

Right-hander Jon Gray delivered a strong performance, going 7 2/3 innings and allowing just one run against the South Siders. And his outing ended in the best way possible.

Sox slugger Tommy Pham hit a ground ball to shortstop that looked like it was going to sneak into the outfield. But shortstop Jonathan Ornelas made a backhand grab and a stellar leaping throw to get the out.

Texas held on to win 3-2 and improved to 49-52 on the season. They also crept to within three games of first place in the weak American League West, which could have massive implications on their trade deadline strategy.

Rangers still in playoff hunt, so what's their trade deadline plan?

Gray and Ornelas could have in fact saved the Rangers season. This is a team that has struggled and it was beginning to look like they might end up selling some pieces off, punting on 2024 for a better 2025.

But because of their heroics, there's still a heartbeat. Now that they're only three games back of first place, they may end up adding pieces instead of subtracting. On paper, this is still a solid ball club, and with pitchers Jacob deGrom and Tyler Mahle returning, it might make sense for general manager Chris Young to invest in this year's roster and give them a better chance to defend their World Series title.

Texas won 90 games last season and earned the second Wild Card in the American League before they went on a magical run. We don't know if they have that in the tank for 2024, but they're fighting every night and refuse to make the front office's decision easy.

This type of win, while against a sub-par team, could be one that helps the Rangers turn their season around. Now they just need to ride this momentum with two more games against the White Sox, three against the Blue Jays, and one vs the Cardinals before the trade deadline.