The Texas Rangers appear to be actively pursuing Shohei Ohtani. The Rangers were one of the teams who had given up on signing the two-way superstar after first expressing interest in him, according to an ESPN story on Friday. After investing hundreds of millions of dollars in the last two offseasons to strengthen their offense—signing starting pitcher Jacob deGrom, shortstop Corey Seager, and second baseman Marcus Semien—the Rangers were considered a possible landing point. For the first time in the team’s history, the Rangers also won the World Series last month.
Furthermore, the Rangers lack a logical contender to be Ohtani’s regular designated hitter, which is considered essential for him as he can only play in 2024 after surgery to repair his damaged UCL earlier this year. According to his reps, he plans to start hitting and pitching again in 2025. In remarks to media on Thursday, Rangers general manager Chris Young made it clear that he could present the organization’s case to team owner Ray Davis in the event that the team required financial resources to pursue a player, but he refrained from commenting on any Ohtani rumors.
However, according to Spotrac.com, the Rangers have already committed $166.75 million to eight players until 2024. In addition, Diamond Sports Group, the organization in charge of the Bally networks, is bankrupt and might fire several of its partners for the upcoming season in an effort to clean up its balance sheet, which could affect the Rangers’ broadcast payout for 2024.
Apart from their obvious need for a reliable closer, the Rangers are still looking for at least one more starter and more bullpen depth. Ohtani led the American League in home runs with 44 at the end of 2023, finishing with a slash line of.304/.412/.654/1.066. He had a record of 10-5 as a pitcher with a 3.14 ERA, 167 strikeouts, and 55 walks.
The teams who are still interested in signing Ohtani are the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays, and Angels, according to ESPN. The Boston Red Sox and New York Mets also seem to have turned away, along with the Rangers.
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