Rangers get much-needed bullpen boost as forgotten offseason signing returns from IL

The Texas Rangers' bullpen has been one of the worst in baseball lately. Since July 1, Rangers relievers rank 29th in ERA (5.61), 26th in strikeout rate (18.8%) and 29th in batting average (.279). The Rangers bolstered their bullpen before the trade deadline by acquiring right-hander Chase Silseth from the Los Angeles Angels, but the club didn't make any other significant moves other than trading Josh Smith and minor leaguer Josh Stephan to the Toronto Blue Jays for left-handed reliever Adam Macko, who is currently with Triple-A Round Rock.

The Rangers may not have made any significant moves to improve their bullpen at the trade deadline, but the club just reinstated left-hander Jordan Montgomery from the injured list. Texas also reinstated left-hander Cody Bradford from the IL on Wednesday, giving the Rangers' pitching staff another needed boost.

Manager Skip Schumaker announced Montgomery will go to the bullpen. Bradford joined the rotation and threw 4 1/3 scoreless innings in his first start back. As a result of Bradford being slotted into Texas' starting five, Cal Quantrill has been moved back to a relief role. It's unclear exactly what roles Montgomery and Quantrill will play as relievers for Texas.

The Rangers' rotation now consists of Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi, MacKenzie Gore, Kumar Rocker and Bradford.

So, the Rangers get two additional bullpen arms in Montgomery and Quantrill without having to surrender any value to acquire them.

Rangers hope to get 2023 version of Jordan Mongomery

The Rangers signed Montgomery, 33, to a one-year, $1.25 million contract in February. Montgomery, who played a huge role on the Rangers' 2023 World Series team after being acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals at the trade deadline, hasn't pitched in a big-league game since 2024. He underwent the second Tommy John surgery in his career in March 2025.

After becoming a playoff hero for Texas, Montgomery became a free agent and signed a one-year, $25 million contract with the Diamondbacks. He had a rough 2024 season with Arizona, posting a 6.23 ERA in 117 innings across 25 outings (21 starts). His contract with the Diamondbacks included a $22.5 million player option for 2025, which he exercised.

If the Rangers get the version of Montgomery who pitched for the team in 2023, the pitching staff will be in a much better spot. After joining Texas in 2023, the left-hander finished the season by posting a 2.79 ERA in 67 2/3 innings across 11 starts. His success continued throughout the postseason, as the southpaw recorded a 2.90 ERA in 31 innings across six outings (five starts) with Texas en route to the team winning its first World Series in franchise history.

While it's not much, Montgomery made four relief appearances in 2024, posting a 4.58 ERA coming out of the bullpen versus a 6.40 mark in the rotation. We'll have to see how he adapts to full-time relief work, but if it clicks, the Rangers might have just gotten a big-time weapon out of nowhere.

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