Reds' latest signing finally gives Rangers a ray of bullpen hope

The Cincinnati Reds re-signed righty reliever Emilio Pagán to a two-year, $20 million contract, according to The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal and C. Trent Rosecrans. The deal allows Pagán to opt out after next season.

Pagán, 34, began his MLB career with the Seattle Mariners in 2017. Seattle traded him to the Oakland Athletics in the 2017-18 offseason. Then, in the following offseason, the Athletics dealt him to the Tampa Bay Rays as part of a three-way deal with the Rangers involving utilityman Jurickson Profar.

After just one season with the Rays, Pagán was traded to the San Diego Padres for catcher Logan Driscoll and outfielder Manuel Margot. He spent two seasons with San Diego, then was traded again, this time to the Minnesota Twins, along with righty starting pitcher Chris Paddack, in exchange for lefty reliever Taylor Rogers and outfielder Brent Rooker.

Pagán spent two seasons with the Twins before signing a two-year, $16 million contract with the Reds in the 2023-24 offseason. The righty reliever struggled in his first season as a Red, posting a 4.50 ERA in just 38 innings. But in 2025, he proved he is among the best bullpen arms in MLB by posting a 2.88 ERA with 32 saves, 81 strikeouts and 22 walks over 68 2/3 innings.

Reds' Emilio Pagán signing could benefit Rangers' bullpen rebuild

Why should Rangers fans care about the Reds re-signing Pagán? Well, Pagán was one of the better bullpen arms in baseball last season, yet he signed for just $10 million per year. For an MLB team on a budget, paying $10 million per year for an All-Star-level closer is a bargain. The fact that Pagán signed for that amount suggests the Rangers will be able to rebuild their bullpen affordably this offseason.

While shelling out $10 million per year for one of the better closers in baseball is a good deal, the Rangers still may not be able to afford to pay one bullpen arm that much money while shedding as much payroll as they want to. However, there aren't many relievers left on the free agent market who are on Pagán's level. Therefore, the Rangers should be able to use Pagán's contract when negotiating with other free agent relievers who haven't performed as well as Pagán did in 2025 but could still make Texas' bullpen better.