The Texas Rangers (37-33) have climbed back after their slow start to the 2015 MLB season and are now in the playoff discussion. Their starting rotation has suffered countless injuries, so the club will likely explore an upgrade in that area before the trade deadline.
General manager Jon Daniels already made a move in the offseason to acquire Yovani Gallardo from the Milwaukee Brewers. This, of course, came after the team failed to reach a deal with the Philadelphia Phillies for Cole Hamels. It also occurred before Tommy John surgery knocked Yu Darvish out for the season.
The Rangers' starter's ERA (3.57) ranks sixth in the MLB, but their staff is not built (at least on paper) to maintain success for a 162-game season or a postseason series. The staff has done a good job keeping the club in contention, but Daniels likely knows he needs to upgrade the unit to help Texas stay on track the rest of the way.
"Watch for Texas to make a move for a pitcher," writes Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe. "Cole Hamels could be the target, though Scott Kazmir and Jeff Samardzija also have some appeal."
Hamels is certainly on the market as the Phillies look to get value for the left-hander amidst their rebuilding period. In fact, it's been said the Rangers are a good fit for the veteran and ESPN senior writer Jayson Stark believes "Hamels winds up in Texas with minutes left before the [trade] deadline."
However, Stark also noted Phillies GM Ruben Amaro is still "fixated" on players various teams have "balked at trading," which could force the Rangers to look elsewhere for starting pitching help. Cafardo's suggestions of Kazmir and Samardzija are realistic.
Rival executives have said the A's could move Kazmir well before the deadline to maximize the value they get in return for the left-hander. If Hamels is unattainable, Kazmir would be much cheaper in a deal because he'll be a free agent after the season and A's GM Billy Beane is known to be open-minded when making deals.
As for Samardzija, it appears as if the White Sox will wait until the last possible minute to deal him, if that's even on their mind. They acquired the right-hander in the offseason as they overhauled their roster, but the results have not shown with their 30-38 record. It'll be hard for them to catch up in the competitive AL Central that has the Cleveland Indians, Detroit Tigers, Minnesota Twins and Kansas City Roylas ahead of them.
Nonetheless, it's important to know Daniels is considering all possible options that can make the Rangers better.
"If someone out there can help us, we have to be open minded," he told MLB Network Radio last week. "We'll evaluate our own guys first and go from there."
