Texas Rangers add a former World Series winner to the bullpen

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The Texas Rangers woke up from their offseason slumber on Thursday night. Texas had not signed a significant free agent since coming to an agreement with Kirby Yates on December 6th. That came to an end when baseball insiders revealed that Texas signed right-handed reliever David Robertson to a one-year contract worth between $11-12 million. It is a departure from the end of the Jon Daniels era when the front office found unexpected diamonds in pitchers like Sam Dyson, Shawn Tolleson, Keone Kela, Ian Kennedy, and Josh Sborz. So lets dive into what Robertson brings to Texas, how he pitched in 2023, and what role will he pitch in the bullpen.

David Robertson, professional bullpen pitcher.

David Robertson is not a former starter turned reliever. He is a player who has been pitching in the bullpen since being drafted by the New York Yankees in the 17th round of the 2006 draft. He made his debut in June 2008 at age 23 and has been an active reliever since then. Texas will be Robertson's ninth organization to pitch for what will be his 16th season.

Robertson will give Bruce Bochy another veteran arm to call upon in the late innings. He enters the 2024 season with a career ERA of 2.90 with 175 saves. He brings plenty of postseason experience to a bullpen full of pitchers who got their first taste of the postseason back in 2023. Robertson in his career has pitched in 42 postseason games with an ERA of 3.04. He has pitched in two World Series with the Yankees in 2009 against the Phillies and then again in 2022 for the Phillies against the Astros.

Robertson has seen everything in his long career. He can use that experience and be a mentor for the younger members of the staff. That would include players like Josh Sborz, Jonathan Hernandez, Brock Burke, Grant Anderson, and the variety of younger bullpen arms that will populate spring training starting next month. He will be a fountain of wisdom for those players.

Next: What did Robertson do in 2023?

How did Robertson pitch in 2023?

Robertson has been a dependable reliever throughout his long career. That continued in 2023 at least in his time with the New York Mets. He had signed with the Mets on a one-year deal the prior offseason. The Mets were a disappointment in 2023 and became sellers in late July leading to Max Scherzer being traded to the Rangers and David Robertson being traded to the Miami Marlins. There were rumors Texas was trying to acquire Robertson at the deadline last season.

Robertson with the Mets pitched in 44 innings and had a 2.66 ERA with 48 strikeouts to 13 walks. He was a highly sought after reliever. The Marlins ended up completing the trade for Robertson. In Miami Robertson was not quite as effective. He pitched in 21 1/3 innings and had a 5.06 ERA with 30 strikeouts to 12 walks. That high ERA is because of how poorly he pitched in August right after the trade was made. Robertson in 10 August innings allowed 10 runs, picked up four losses, and was demoted from the closers role for the rest of the season.

Robertson did rebound in September pitching in a setup role. He pitched in 10 1/3 innings in the month and only gave up two earned runs the entire month, both in the same game. He finished the month with 19 strikeouts and six walks. He was more effective in the setup role for the Marlins and became the pitcher they thought they were getting when the trade was made.

I would say 2023 was overall a good season with one terrible month. I think some of that can be chalked up to the upheaval that comes with being traded and trying to get settled into a new city in the middle of a season. Robertson now comes from a team that made the playoffs for the first time in a 162-game season since 2003 to a team that is coming off winning their first World Series in franchise history.

Next: Where can we expect to see Robertson pitch?

What role with Robertson have in the bullpen?

The high salary indicates to me that Texas is expecting Robertson to pitch in high-leverage situations. That is exactly what he has done throughout his career as he has spent time as a closer and in a setup role. Now he pitches for the best bullpen manager in the game in Bruce Bochy. During the playoff run last season Bochy primarily relied on just three bullpen relievers to carry them to the World Series. Texas now adding David Robertson and Kirby Yates this offseason has given Bochy more late-inning options.

If Jose Leclerc, Josh Sborz, David Robertson, and Kirby Yates make it to Opening Day healthy then I think it will allow Bochy to mix and match in the late innings. All four are right-handed, but all have different ways that they attack hitters. Leclerc is with a fastball and changeup, Sborz is fastball and curveball, Robertson is slider and knuckle curve, and Yates is fastball and splitter. Even though they are all right-handed hitters will not be able to approach them the same way.

My prediction is that Leclerc opens the season as the primary closer, Robertson is in the eighth, Sborz in the 7th, and Yates is the swing guy who will pitch in the middle innings or be called upon in the late innings if any of the other three have pitched consecutive days and need a day off. The bullpen is in a stronger spot now than it was at the end of the regular season. Robertson is a pro and I fully expect him to come in and excel in whatever role he is put in.

Texas has just one more move to make and that is to resign Jordan Montgomery. The wait continues on that one. Both sides want it to happen. It does not appear that there is any rush from either side to get it done.

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