The Texas Rangers have been humming a consistent tune in the offseason, and that's about trying to keep their payroll manageable.
However, not everyone appears to be buying the narrative.
“First off, there's an open question and then I've heard this from other teams. They think that Rangers are playing possum in how they're talking about, ‘Hey, we got to reduce salary,”‘ Buster Olney of ESPN told Paul Hembekides.
“They think there's that there's more it's a it's a bluff. That's what other teams believe.”
Olney's take came after he was asked for his thoughts on a potential trade involving the Atlanta Braves and the Rangers, in which Texas would send star shortstop Corey Seager to the National League East ballclub as part of a payroll-saving move.
Seager inked a massive 10-year, $325 million contract with Texas in 2021. He is to earn $31.5 million in salary annually from 2026 until 2031. So, if the Rangers are looking to cut down on their salary payables, Seager appears to be among the top candidates — if not the top candidate — to be traded away by the Rangers.
At present, the Rangers have a total payroll of $144.25 million for the 2026 MLB season, and that should rise, as they only have six players with guaranteed contracts for the 2026 campaign. However, Texas president of baseball operations Chris Young told reporters earlier in the offseason that the Rangers' payroll “is going to be smaller than it was,” per The Dallas Morning News (h/t Matt Postins of Sports Illustrated).
After winning the World Series in 2023, the Rangers have missed the MLB playoffs two years in a row.
