Agree with platooning Smith/Freeman. Grand total stats may not be overwhelming vs Semien, but game to game, I expect that combo to more consistently get on base and do the things that keep an offense pushing runs across. And that's vs 34-35 year old Semien. May truly outproduce 36-37 year old Semien.
*****Official Texas Rangers 2025 2026 Offseason Thread*****
48,175 Views |
595 Replies |
Last: 1 day ago by dvldog
Nimmo: 155G, .262, .324 OBP, .760 OPS, 114 OPS+, 25HR, 92 RBI, 141 SO, 2.9 WAR; $20.5M
Adolis: 135G, .227, .271 OBP, .665 OPS, 93 OPS+, 19HR, 75 RBI, 135 SO; 2.7 WAR; $9.2M
The #5 spot in the lineup for the Rangers went .192 in '25.
Nimmo moved around in the top of the lineup, but the lineup included Juan Sota (43 HR), Pete Alonso (38), Francisco Lindor (31), among others.
Sure, Adolis didn't have a great season, but he didn't have near the help that Nimmo had around him.
I'm fine dumping Adolis. I just can't believe we'll have Nimmo for 5 more years. They are 25 days apart in age. And while his numbers are marginally better than Adolis, I wouldn't have signed Adolis for 5 more years.
We signed Haggerty for what ... $1.25M?! We have Langford (Serf) and Osuna (Serf). Carter if healthy (Serf). Nimmo is better than Haggerty and Osuna, for sure. I just don't expect him to be a huge lift over Adolis, whom we could sign for less and 1 yr.
I wouldn't be surprised if the asstros sign Garcia.
You're eventually going to need to accept that Garcia is not going to play for the Rangers again. You've been trying to shoehorn him into the 2026 lineup because of his defense, but I think the Rangers were done with him because he does not take to coaching. Young and Bochy made so many comments directly and indirectly about him that it was obvious they were frustrated with him. When he takes the right approach, he's a very dangerous hitter. But he resorts back to swinging for the fences and is one of the easiest outs in the game. That can really piss off an organization.
This is also not a Garcia for Nimmo straight up swap. Garcia was getting $12-13MM in arbitration and Semien was getting $25MM. So $37MM for a guy the FO no longer wants on the team and a 36 year old middle infielder and replaced with $20.5MM for a player with better overall numbers than both of them, plus $5MM in cash and can now use some of that savings to go get a 2B. This gives them so much more roster flexibility than before.
I would also get myself prepared for some of that money to go to Arraez to play 2B here for two years to hit at the top of the order and hold a middle infield spot for Walcott once he's ready. Those stars just seem aligned.
This is also not a Garcia for Nimmo straight up swap. Garcia was getting $12-13MM in arbitration and Semien was getting $25MM. So $37MM for a guy the FO no longer wants on the team and a 36 year old middle infielder and replaced with $20.5MM for a player with better overall numbers than both of them, plus $5MM in cash and can now use some of that savings to go get a 2B. This gives them so much more roster flexibility than before.
I would also get myself prepared for some of that money to go to Arraez to play 2B here for two years to hit at the top of the order and hold a middle infield spot for Walcott once he's ready. Those stars just seem aligned.
Stolen from the thread from our friends from the South
This CAN’T be real life…. What are you DOING, David Stearns? pic.twitter.com/X7KtzqSONf
— Danielle McCartan from WFAN (@CoachMcCartan) November 23, 2025
I really liked Semien and think he was one of the main reasons we won the World Series in 2023.
That said, this trade is a huge win for the Rangers. Mostly that's because between Duran, Smith and Freeman we should be able to patch together 2-3 WAR from our 2B as a worst case scenario and 4 WAR is what I expect. Our top prospect is also an infield prospect so we'll need room for him to play somewhere. Seager might move to 3rd but it's nice to have 2nd available also.
Meanwhile our outfield situation just improved immensely. DallasAg94 can claim that Adolis and Nimmo are similar, but .100 OPS gain is huge. We make the playoffs last year with Nimmo vs. Adolis.
That said, this trade is a huge win for the Rangers. Mostly that's because between Duran, Smith and Freeman we should be able to patch together 2-3 WAR from our 2B as a worst case scenario and 4 WAR is what I expect. Our top prospect is also an infield prospect so we'll need room for him to play somewhere. Seager might move to 3rd but it's nice to have 2nd available also.
Meanwhile our outfield situation just improved immensely. DallasAg94 can claim that Adolis and Nimmo are similar, but .100 OPS gain is huge. We make the playoffs last year with Nimmo vs. Adolis.
Walcott is still a year away, I wouldn't count on him being part of the solution in '26.
Look... I don't care if Adolis plays for the Rangers. My points weren't to promote Adolis.
We will take a step back on defense. Period.
I was fine running out Haggerty - Langford - Osuna/Retread. I don't like the idea of running out Nimmo for 5 years at $20.5M. That's why I'm hoping they flip him.
I am disappointed they traded Semien. Again, our defense will drop.
Next step is to trade Seager and deGrom. As mentioned, with the NYM and Rangers trade mention, I was expecting deGrom. He got a warm welcome on his return and it is clear he loved pitching there.
I was very vocal about the return to old-school NL baseball. Move runners, play small ball. Manufacture runs. Adolis is never going to move runners over consistently. He will be playing '26 for a contract and small ball doesn't make money.
I think the issue with Semien is that he makes too much money to not be a vocal leader on the team. The silent lead-by-example types are fine, but you can't have a team full of them.
We will take a step back on defense. Period.
I was fine running out Haggerty - Langford - Osuna/Retread. I don't like the idea of running out Nimmo for 5 years at $20.5M. That's why I'm hoping they flip him.
I am disappointed they traded Semien. Again, our defense will drop.
Next step is to trade Seager and deGrom. As mentioned, with the NYM and Rangers trade mention, I was expecting deGrom. He got a warm welcome on his return and it is clear he loved pitching there.
I was very vocal about the return to old-school NL baseball. Move runners, play small ball. Manufacture runs. Adolis is never going to move runners over consistently. He will be playing '26 for a contract and small ball doesn't make money.
I think the issue with Semien is that he makes too much money to not be a vocal leader on the team. The silent lead-by-example types are fine, but you can't have a team full of them.
You flip the two based on the lineup and there is little chance Nimmo performs better than Adolis with our '25 lineups.
We'll have 2026 to find out if Nimmo with Burger, Seager, Jung, Pederson, and Langford can put up the numbers Nimmo put up with Pete Alonso, Juan Soto, and Lindor.
Who do you have protecting Nimmo?!
We'll have 2026 to find out if Nimmo with Burger, Seager, Jung, Pederson, and Langford can put up the numbers Nimmo put up with Pete Alonso, Juan Soto, and Lindor.
Who do you have protecting Nimmo?!
DallasAg 94 said:
Look... I don't care if Adolis plays for the Rangers. My points weren't to promote Adolis.
We will take a step back on defense. Period.
I was fine running out Haggerty - Langford - Osuna/Retread. I don't like the idea of running out Nimmo for 5 years at $20.5M. That's why I'm hoping they flip him.
I am disappointed they traded Semien. Again, our defense will drop.
Next step is to trade Seager and deGrom. As mentioned, with the NYM and Rangers trade mention, I was expecting deGrom. He got a warm welcome on his return and it is clear he loved pitching there.
I was very vocal about the return to old-school NL baseball. Move runners, play small ball. Manufacture runs. Adolis is never going to move runners over consistently. He will be playing '26 for a contract and small ball doesn't make money.
I think the issue with Semien is that he makes too much money to not be a vocal leader on the team. The silent lead-by-example types are fine, but you can't have a team full of them.
Why do you think we trade Seager and DeGrom?? I don't think we are in complete rebuild mode.
I don't care about taking a step back from one of the best defenses of all time if it means improving the offense. Replace Semien and Garcia and you still have a good defense. And I don't know long anyone can expect to rely on great defense from Semien and Garcia, given their ages. Semien is a workhorse but I could see Garcia breaking down.
We aren't trading Seager. The Rangers are not in rebuild mode. I don't think that's even worth discussing.
WestTexasAg said:
Why do you think we trade Seager and DeGrom?? I don't think we are in complete rebuild mode.
I would have expected the Rangers to trade Seager before Semien.
Semien had 3 yrs left on his contract and Seager has 6. Semien has: $26M, $26M, and $20M remaining, so the 3rd year was a cheaper year.
Seager was an injury risk when we signed him and he has shown that. Semien, albeit sluggish at time... he is an every day player.
If Josh Smith is going to play 2B, we will still need a Util guy for Seager's injuries. Maybe Walcott is the fill-in to get experience?! We have 34 on our 40, so we have some space to add him. Maybe the Rangers see some Rule-V guys they are interested in?!
deGrom... more sentimental than anything. 3 more years at $38M, $37M, and $37M. That's a huge chunk and he track record isn't strong to remain healthy at that price.
He hit .262 in 2025, which exactly matched his ten year career average of .262.
I would see how the rest of this lineup is constructed before projecting out how this team will look. They freed up a lot of salary with this move and dropping Garcia and Heim. They have a proven veteran OF with another $15MM left over. They can now use those savings for another catcher to pair with Higgy and I've already said I think Arraez signs which covers second. Then we'll see what they do at first and third but I think they go with Burger and Jung again. And I think Burger will have a really good year. He was playing in a new place with the stress of a new born with Down's syndrome weighing on him. I donmt know how he was able to maintain the level of focus he was able to do last year. Now he's settled in.
I would see how the rest of this lineup is constructed before projecting out how this team will look. They freed up a lot of salary with this move and dropping Garcia and Heim. They have a proven veteran OF with another $15MM left over. They can now use those savings for another catcher to pair with Higgy and I've already said I think Arraez signs which covers second. Then we'll see what they do at first and third but I think they go with Burger and Jung again. And I think Burger will have a really good year. He was playing in a new place with the stress of a new born with Down's syndrome weighing on him. I donmt know how he was able to maintain the level of focus he was able to do last year. Now he's settled in.
He probably should be one more year away, but top prospects that spend an entire year at AA usually debut the following year ready or not. At a certain point you just have to find out if a guy can sink or swim at the big league level because you don't gain much from having a prospect spend multiple seasons in the high minors.
My expectation is that we're going to see Walcott at some point next year. Likely a late summer debut after he has a hot week or two on the farm to try and ride some confidence into the show.
My expectation is that we're going to see Walcott at some point next year. Likely a late summer debut after he has a hot week or two on the farm to try and ride some confidence into the show.
Flounder Dorfman said:
We aren't trading Seager. The Rangers are not in rebuild mode. I don't think that's even worth discussing.
Totally agree.
If they get Arraez, this team won't be worth watching.
He is a liability defender at 1B, which is what he now plays because he isn't a 2B. If you are a fan of Foscue... Arraez is on your bucket list.
He is an OBP guy.
And that is it. No power. No defense. We did the one role player with Pederson.
We dumped Late Lowe because he couldn't catch up to a 4SFB... and we got Burger who hits 4SFB, but is a one-trick player.
Let's go with Cody Freeman. Current Manager coached Arraez in Miami. I mentioned this before... if you like Arraez, have whats-his-name tell Freeman to study the role Arraez was in Miami and be "that guy."
I'm cool with Freeman at 2B for the cost of a Serf. He is 24 and has 3 yrs as a serf and 3 Arbs. By all accounts he is a gamer and natural vocal leader. If b CY likes Freeman, it may be the reason he traded Semien.
He is a liability defender at 1B, which is what he now plays because he isn't a 2B. If you are a fan of Foscue... Arraez is on your bucket list.
He is an OBP guy.
And that is it. No power. No defense. We did the one role player with Pederson.
We dumped Late Lowe because he couldn't catch up to a 4SFB... and we got Burger who hits 4SFB, but is a one-trick player.
Let's go with Cody Freeman. Current Manager coached Arraez in Miami. I mentioned this before... if you like Arraez, have whats-his-name tell Freeman to study the role Arraez was in Miami and be "that guy."
I'm cool with Freeman at 2B for the cost of a Serf. He is 24 and has 3 yrs as a serf and 3 Arbs. By all accounts he is a gamer and natural vocal leader. If b CY likes Freeman, it may be the reason he traded Semien.
rbtexan said:
Walcott is still a year away, I wouldn't count on him being part of the solution in '26.
He is projected as a 2026 arrival. He had a good year at AA last year with a .741 OPS,.13 HRs, 59 RBIs and 32 SBs.
I would like to see him get another year in the minors as well, but man he's exciting. Maybe Duran and/or smth can hold down the fort for one season.
I know Schumaker coached Arraez. That's why I think he's coming here.
I love Cody Freeman and if it were me, I'm probably going with him at second and keeping Smith in the utility role where he's best suited. And it might be exactly what happens. That would be cool
I love Cody Freeman and if it were me, I'm probably going with him at second and keeping Smith in the utility role where he's best suited. And it might be exactly what happens. That would be cool
Between Seager and Jung, even if you intend to platoon Smith/Freeman, they will both play a lot
First time I've ever heard adding a career .310+ hitter as "they get him and this team won't be worth watching". Might be time to check that ssri dosage. This lineup needs more ducks on the pond and balls in play. The dude never strikes out. 1B is 1B.
First time I've ever heard adding a career .310+ hitter as "they get him and this team won't be worth watching". Might be time to check that ssri dosage. This lineup needs more ducks on the pond and balls in play. The dude never strikes out. 1B is 1B.
He's Justin Foscue except for the fact that Foscue absolutely cannot hit MLB pitching while Arraez hits nearly .320, which if you are doing the math at home that is .250 higher. WTF kind of nonsense is that?
This offense did not suck last year because it lacked power. It was mid in that regard. It sucked because it didn't put guys on base. One of the league's worst at it.
This offense did not suck last year because it lacked power. It was mid in that regard. It sucked because it didn't put guys on base. One of the league's worst at it.
I don't know if we sign Arraez or not, but his lack of power is irrelevant. This team has power, the problem is getting guys on base consistently. For pop, you've got Seager, Pederson, Higgy, Jung (if he sticks around), Langford, Nimmo, and Burger. That's over 2/3rds of your lineup with players who can go yard, and Smith has hit double figures in HRs each of the past two seasons as well.
From a hitting standpoint, he would be exactly what this lineup needs. He's a career .317/.363 OBP player, and I frankly don't give a damn what his SLG or OPS are, because the first two stats I posted are what matter most for this team in its current construct.
From a hitting standpoint, he would be exactly what this lineup needs. He's a career .317/.363 OBP player, and I frankly don't give a damn what his SLG or OPS are, because the first two stats I posted are what matter most for this team in its current construct.
You explained why I think they sign Arraez, outside of the fact that he won a batting title under Schumaker. This offense desperately needed a guy that could just put the freaking ball in play last year. The low baseball IQ at bats were maddening.
Not everyone needs to go yard. Get someone on base in front of the guys that can go yard and your solo shots become 2-3 runs. The thing I love the most about the moves that have been made so far is we are likely reducing the number of times a runner is standing at third with less than two outs and watching some dude at the plate swinging out of his shoes.
Not everyone needs to go yard. Get someone on base in front of the guys that can go yard and your solo shots become 2-3 runs. The thing I love the most about the moves that have been made so far is we are likely reducing the number of times a runner is standing at third with less than two outs and watching some dude at the plate swinging out of his shoes.
I don't see it with Arraez. The profile makes sense but he's terrible defensively. He can not play 2B anymore and I think they roll with Burger/Pederson for 1B/DH.
If you can make the right deal with Arraez, I dump Joc and eat some of his salary. Make it as close to a wash as possible to where you swapped one for the other. Arraez was 1/$14 last year and I don't see him getting more, likely less. Joc is at $18.5 so there is room to send some cash to where you are still in the $18-20 range spent on that roster spot.
The piece that we don't know and can't judge is the locker room. Based on a few comments last year, the locker room was broken. While some of these changes might be washes on the field, they might bring something behind the scenes that this team sorely lacked.
I wouldn't necessarily call it broken but it didn't seem cohesive. That said, I think that is overrated. If you win, you had a good room. If you lose, you didn't have a good room. But Semien is a quiet pro that took care of business. Seager is a quiet pro that takes care of business. So I can see how there wasn't a lot of rah rah leadership and cohesiveness, but that's not a broken room
I just want to know if Nimmo likes to plan team outings on the road or events with families so the younger players feel good about the team.
No rock 'n bowl, no postseason glory.
No rock 'n bowl, no postseason glory.
Brandon Nimmo: "I would not have waived that no-trade clause if I didn't think I could come here and win."
— Shawn McFarland (@McFarland_Shawn) November 24, 2025
Said the Mets approached him Thursday night, spent weekend on phone gathering info, was eventually sold that Rangers weren't a rebuild and were set to compete.
KT 90 said:Brandon Nimmo: "I would not have waived that no-trade clause if I didn't think I could come here and win."
— Shawn McFarland (@McFarland_Shawn) November 24, 2025
Said the Mets approached him Thursday night, spent weekend on phone gathering info, was eventually sold that Rangers weren't a rebuild and were set to compete.
Thought this was interesting. Maybe we are done trimming payroll? Or they consider some of the moves addition by subtraction.
Let's see what we do to round out the bullpen (and rotation), then we can see how serious we are about contending in 2026
I expect a retooling that stays under the threshold but not drastically. You play half the season out, depending on how the retool looks, you consider either locking in or dumping nice veteran assets by the deadline.
Flounder Dorfman said:
I know Schumaker coached Arraez. That's why I think he's coming here.
I love Cody Freeman and if it were me, I'm probably going with him at second and keeping Smith in the utility role where he's best suited. And it might be exactly what happens. That would be cool
That, IMO, would be fun.
Somebody linked a story by Newburg about Freeman. It really was pretty exciting.
Here are my post posts on Freeman v Arraez:
https://texags.com/forums/53/topics/3563700/replies/71009966
Quote:
Who does Arraez replace if we pay him $10-15M+
Keep in mind Pederson (DH) and Burger (1B) fill spots Arraez could fill.
https://texags.com/forums/53/topics/3563700/replies/70993424
Quote:
I think he is the type of player you are trying to develop from Freeman. I think Shoe goes to Freeman and says, "Go watch as much of Luiz Arraez hitting as you can. He played for me in MIami. That's what I want from you in 2026."
DannyDuberstein said:
Between Seager and Jung, even if you intend to platoon Smith/Freeman, they will both play a lot
First time I've ever heard adding a career .310+ hitter as "they get him and this team won't be worth watching". Might be time to check that ssri dosage. This lineup needs more ducks on the pond and balls in play. The dude never strikes out. 1B is 1B.
A .310 hitter that platoons with Burger and Pederson?!
My issue is that he is one-dimensional. He hits. He is a liability at 2B. He is a liability at 1B. He DHs, where we already have a platoon player whose only role with the team is to DH against RHP. He gets $18M.
If Arraez plays 2B, it will be frustrating to watch. SO... for the 3-4 ABs he gets, you can celebrate while we get 9 Innings of terrible defense.
This team didn't suck because we couldn't get guys on.
It sucked because we couldn't get guys in from 3B with 0 outs.
Late in the game, we just never realized it was possible to get a runner in from 3B without swinging to get 120mph exit velocity. It was what made the "little rascals" fun and successful. They were able to move runners in.
We need more of that. If Arraez could play Defense, I'm all for that kind of hitter. But everyone complained about Shin-Soo Choo.
It sucked because we couldn't get guys in from 3B with 0 outs.
Late in the game, we just never realized it was possible to get a runner in from 3B without swinging to get 120mph exit velocity. It was what made the "little rascals" fun and successful. They were able to move runners in.
We need more of that. If Arraez could play Defense, I'm all for that kind of hitter. But everyone complained about Shin-Soo Choo.
That's encouraging.
Featured Stories
See All
2027 Cy Fall EDGE Kaden McCarty commits to Texas A&M
by Ryan Brauninger
5:40
5h ago
4.3k
In-Home Visit: Kaden McCarty picks A&M over other Lone Star finalists
by TexAgs Recruiting
Heightened focus required of Texas A&M given the urgency of CFP
by Olin Buchanan
54:17
11h ago
6.3k
4:46
4h ago
1.7k
Strong relationships led 2027 EDGE Kaden McCarty to A&M commitment
by Cade Draughon
ObstreperousFarmer
SEC Shorts - SEC teams board the Playoff Train
in Billy Liucci's TexAgs Premium
146