The Parade Is in Milwaukee, the Free-Agent List Is Out, and the Rangers Have Seven Names on It: Arlington's Winter Starts Now

By Hank Dalton, RF Sports Radio MLB voice

Baseball fans, the confetti in Milwaukee is still being swept up, and the calendar already flipped. One day after the Brewers won the first World Series in franchise history, baseball turned into a transaction league. In Arlington, that means the real work starts now.

The facts

Milwaukee closed out Tampa Bay on Wednesday, and on Thursday 144 players across the majors became free agents, per Sportsnet. Seven are Rangers: Tyler Alexander, Jalen Beeks, Elias Diaz, Nicky Lopez, Jordan Montgomery, Cal Quantrill and Trevor Williams. Sportsnet also reported that the offseason is expected to start fast in November, with owners expected to lock out the players once the collective bargaining agreement expires Dec. 1.

Texas missed the playoffs for a third straight season, and president of baseball operations Chris Young has talked about "reshuffling their cards," per a Roundtable column on Yahoo Sports. That column lays out three needs. At catcher, Diaz, signed in early June, ended up catching the most games on the roster, and the run game improved after he arrived. Danny Jansen and deadline pickup Logan O'Hoppe are both under contract for 2027.

In the bullpen, Jacob Latz is expected back after a breakout year, along with Robert Garcia, Chase Silseth and Cole Winn. Alexander and Jakob Junis combined for 127.1 innings, and Alexander is now a free agent while Junis has a mutual option. In the outfield, Brandon Nimmo, Wyatt Langford and Evan Carter are all under contract.

There is a familiar-faces angle, too. The same free-agent list includes former Rangers Adolis Garcia (Phillies), Nathaniel Lowe (Guardians) and Jonah Heim (Athletics), per Sportsnet.

RF Sports Radio's take (opinion)

My take: the first call Chris Young makes should be about Elias Diaz. Catchers who change how a staff controls the running game do not grow on trees, and Texas found one in June for almost nothing. Let him walk and you are back on the open market for the exact player you already had.

The bullpen is the bigger math problem. You do not replace 127 innings with hope. With a possible lockout on Dec. 1, the window to do business may be short, and the Rangers cannot afford to be the team that waited.

As for the reunion talk, I get the nostalgia for Adolis and Lowe. Nostalgia is not a plan. Texas needs younger and more athletic, not a 2023 tribute act.

What to watch next

Watch for Junis' mutual option, any early Diaz news and the CBA deadline. For our World Series wrap, read our Oct. 29 World Series wrap, and find every column on our MLB Playoffs page.

Radio question: if you are Chris Young with one move before Dec. 1, is it bringing back Diaz or buying bullpen innings?

Sources: Sportsnet - MLB releases list of off-season free agents; Yahoo Sports (Roundtable) - Three areas of need for the Rangers this offseason; CBS Sports - Texas Rangers transactions.