Texas Rangers Trade Deadline Preview

Texas Rangers' positions of need

The Rangers entered spring training this season boasting of their starting pitching depth. They went nine deep in starting pitching. Now that we are into July and entering into August that starting pitching depth has been whittled down from nine to just six and even that six is tenuous at best. They need at least one more quality starting pitcher.

The bullpen has been an issue all season long. They have lost so many games that they were leading late. They made one move to bring in Aroldis Chapman and he has helped stabilize the 8th and 9th innings with Will Smith. They probably still need one maybe two more veteran arms to put in the bullpen. That would remove some of these rookies from having to pitch in high-stress situations. It would also give Bochy more arms that he can trust will do their job. The weakness in the pen is really those 6th and 7th innings. They are having issues getting the ball from the starter to both Chapman and Smith to close out games.

Finally, they need to go get a bat that can play outfield and DH. It was announced yesterday that catcher Jonah Heim was going on the 10-day IL with a wrist strain and that he would be reevaluated in two weeks. It is unknown if he will be able to play again this season. This injury will eventually require surgery, but if he can tolerate the pain then he will try and play through it the rest of the way. If he cannot, he will undergo surgery. This probably falls as the last priority, but replacing Heim's offensive production is a need for this team.

Next: The top players Texas is hoping to get