Rangers fan favorite is running out of gas and creating a greater trade deadline need

Where would the Texas Rangers be without journeyman catcher Elias Diaz? He was brought in to platoon with Kyle Higashioka when Danny Jansen went down with a right elbow injury. Now, with Higgy going down and on the IL, he is the team's primary catching option and is doing a solid job handling a Rangers staff that is a mixture of veterans and youngsters.

Unfortunately, after a hot start at the plate, Diaz is coming back down to earth, and his regression is spotlighting one of the team's greatest needs at the trade deadline. Chris Young and Ross Fenstermaker are almost certainly looking at deadline backstop options as Jansen is done for the year and Higgy's return is unclear.

Elias Diaz had been a saviour for the Rangers, but his return to Earth highlights a key trade deadline need

Diaz is slashing .250/.263/.370 for the year, but his numbers have waned. Since July 1, his slash is just .212/.241/.365. A regression to the mean was expected, but there is a reason that Diaz was available to be picked up off the scrap heap to begin with. At 35 years old, he is no longer an everyday catcher.

The team signed Austin Wynns as a stopgap backup, but he is not going to figure into any long-term plans. The Rangers need to pursue a catcher at the deadline, and there are several realistic options out there.

The two top names being floated may be out of the strapped Rangers' reach in Hunter Goodman and Ryan Jeffers, and Shea Langeliers just went down with a season-ending injury. If they could somehow find a way to nab Tyler Stephenson of the Cincinnati Reds or the Twins' Victor Caratini, it would provide a huge boost at a position of need.

Another very real option could be a reunion with former Ranger and World Series catcher Jonah Heim, who has been with the Braves and Athletics since being let go by the team before the 2026 season. You know exactly what you're going to get from Heim, and he is still very well thought of by management and the fanbase.

Heim could be had for very little money, but the real targets should be Stephenson and Caratini. They are better offensive options than Heim and are within the Rangers' budget. Stephenson would likely be more of a rental, as he would be a free agent after the season, but Caratini is under team control through the 2027 season.

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