Rangers could lose credibility as a franchise if they place Nathan Eovaldi on waivers

About a week ago, Ken Rosenthal wrote a piece on the waiver period and how it could impact the Texas Rangers, and it got fans all over MLB thinking. As we know by now, the defending World Series champions are well out of contention and are increasingly likely to fall short of the postseason, and the waiver period before the end of the month could play a big role in that.

Rosenthal listed several players, most notably Nathan Eovaldi, as possibilities for waiver dumps. He also noted it might be a bad look to do that on the heels of winning the World Series last fall.

But let's say for a minute that the Rangers actually do put Eovaldi on waivers. Would they actually go that far?

Could the Rangers waive Nathan Eovaldi as playoff hopes crumble?

Obviously, the Rangers could easily do this. There are plenty of contending teams in need of starting pitching, even with the trade deadline well in the rearview. The Rangers recently got Tyler Mahle back and it might not be too much longer before we see Jacob deGrom make his 2024 debut.

The Rangers could decide that this year is a lost cause and put Eovaldi on the waiver wire to see if any contenders bite. We saw the Angels waive several players last year after they fell out of contention, so it's not too far-fetched to think the Rangers could do it even though those two teams' situations are very different.

At the same time, what Rosenthal is saying makes sense. The optics might be bad if the Rangers dump their best pitcher less than a year after winning the World Series, even with 2024 being all but lost. And at this point, the Rangers won't get anything for him. They'll just save a few bucks.

If they want to compete in 2025, then it might be best to hold onto Eovaldi, hope his 2025 option vests with his innings incentive, and dump fringe pieces instead. As disappointing as this season has been for the Rangers, we can't see the fanbase being too happy about the Rangers waving the white flag in this manner.

If they plan to move Eovaldi at all, it shouldn't be to save money — it should be to get value in return. So they're better off exploring offseason trades if his 2025 option vests rather than placing him on waivers before September.

But that doesn't mean it isn't possible. It's clear that the Rangers have already dug themselves too big of a hole to climb out of. They're 11 games under .500 and the title defense has not gone according to plan.