Rangers shop catcher for needed bullpen help
Robinson Chirinos started at catcher Sunday for the second straight day for the Texas Rangers.
Word of advice: You might want to get used to this.
The Rangers are apparently trying to gauge the early summer trade market to see if they can turn Jonathan Lucroy into help for their beleagueredbull pen. According to two major league sources, the Rangers have begun to contact potential trade partners, letting them know they would be willing to deal Lucroy, who will be a free agent at the end of the season.
Obvious reason
The reasoning behind such an exploration was all the clearer in Sunday’s 6-5 loss to the Chicago White Sox, in which Jose Leclerc gave up a two-out, two-run homer to Yolmer Sanchez. It was the Rangers’ 17th blown save of the season — the most in the majors — and the fourth on the 10game road trip that ended Sunday. Leclerc walked Todd Frazier before hanging a 1-2 breaking ball to Sanchez. It’s been the story of the Rangers’ season.
GM Jon Daniels did not respond to a question about Lucroy’s situation with the Rangers.
Lucroy, who started Monday, seems hardly shaken by the trade talk.
“This is the third time dealing with it,” Lucroy said Monday. “One time I wasn’t traded and one time I was. And I knew it could be a possibility again if we didn’t play well. Robinson is playing really well. You realize you can become expendable. I’m not bothered by it. Actually, I don’t think about it. I’ve been pretty bad all season and I know I’m a lot better than this. That’s what I’m thinking about.”
This is the narrow pathway through which the Rangers try to navigate on the way to a third consecutive playoff berth: With little in the way of advanced minor league prospects to deal and holes in their own bullpen, even after acquiring veteran Jason Grilli on Sunday, the Rangers are trying to get creative.
They have a strength: catching depth. They are trying to leverage that to fortify a weakness: the bullpen.
Plenty in reserve
Lucroy hasn’t played to expectations this year, but has still been a capable major league catcher. Chirinos, on the other hand, has produced at a pace that far surpasses what he did when he was the Rangers’ primary catcher in 2015 and when he was healthy in 2016. Minor leaguer Brett Nicholas has also played well at Class AAA Round Rock. He would become Chirinos’ backup if the Rangers did find a deal for Lucroy.
What is more clear is that the Rangers’ playing time situation has changed. Chirinos has started three of the last five games at catcher, with Lucroy playing at DH in two of the games. Over the past 18 games, the playing time has been almost equal, with Lucroy having 10 starts and Chirinos eight.
The Rangers’ needs have now changed, and Lucroy has gone from being the big import to potentially being the export.