The Athletic's prime Rangers trade candidate misses the mark on multiple fronts

There are going to be an untold number of rumors thrown around between now and the MLB trade deadline on August 3. Some of them will have merit, while others won't seem to be grounded in any kind of reality. The Athletic's most recent trade rumor has Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger being moved, and we can't figure out why.

The theory is that because buyers will be looking to add right-handed power bats, the Rangers will dangle one of their most prominent power hitters as a trade option. Quite frankly, this bit by The Athletic feels a little bit lazy and lacks thorough research to back it up.

The Athletic's most recent Rangers trade rumor, positing Jake Burger being traded away, doesn't make any sense at all

The Athletic is one of the most reputable sports journalism outlets out there. They usually have well- thought-out pieces and offer legitimate predictions. Their latest notion that the Rangers would trade Jake Burger away is not one of their best.

They cite a lack of power-hitting right-handed bats on the market, and claim that Burger is a "decent" option despite putting up disappointing numbers since arriving in Arlington. Well, last year wasn't up to his standards as he was forced onto the IL three separate times. This year, however, has been a different story. You could argue that Burger is delivering exactly what Chris Young and the Rangers believed they would get when they brought him over from Miami in a trade.

Burger is tied with Joc Pederson, leading the Rangers in home runs with 19. He leads the team with 66 RBIs. His slash of .238/.300/.430 is close to his career averages, and he has delivered huge hits several times this season for a team that is in first place in the AL West. He was huge in taking 3 of 4 from the Seattle Mariners over the weekend. He is on pace to hit over 30 homers and exceed 100 RBIs. He would be the first Ranger not named Adolis Garcia to do that since Adrian Beltre in 2016. He and Pederson's return to form are big reasons the Rangers find themselves in first place.

Why in the world would the Rangers want to move a guy who has been their top run producer and season-long cog in the middle of the lineup? Also, if you were to trade Burger, you would have to find a replacement of equal or better value. Where are you going to find that in this market? If anything, the Rangers need to add run producers to the lineup, not subtract them.

The Rangers aren't moving their big right-handed bats in Burger and Wyatt Langford. If anything, they might be looking to add more power from that side of the plate. We can safely say that this rumor from The Athletic is not founded on any practical reason and summarily dismiss it.

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