My Thoughts About the Rangers Latest Acquisitions

The 2024 Winter Meetings in Dallas, TX have been busy. If you aren't familiar with Winter Meetings, it's an opportunity for all 30 Major League Baseball teams to bolster their rosters by trading and signing players. The biggest headline during this offseason was Juan Soto recently signing with the New York Mets. His record-breaking contract has since caused controversy, with some calling it insane and others questioning his ability to make a significant impact with the Mets. I still believe that a salary cap needs to be put in place, because no athlete is worth $765 million or even $700 million, the amount currently being paid to Shohei Ohtani over the next 10 years. Seeking to be paid more isn't immoral but feeling that you're entitled of being paid nearly a billion dollars is selfish. I don't care what good intentions both the Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers organizations have.

Now onto the Texas Rangers and what moves they have made so far during the Winter Meetings. The following players are names that you may know already, with the return of a familiar face, whom I'll discuss towards the end of this story. I predicted in one of my previous stories that the Rangers would win the American League West in 2025, something they haven't done in nearly a decade.

Kyle Higashioka

Catcher Kyle Higashioka signed a 2-year deal with a mutual option for 2027. Affectionately known as Higgy, he comes to the Rangers from the San Diego Padres, which they reached the NLDS before being eliminated by the Dodgers, which they would go on to win the World Series. He and Jonah Heim will share catching duties for the 2025 regular season. The next time he'll face his former team will be July 4-6 at Petco Park.

Jake Burger

The next player who signed with the Rangers earlier this week was first baseman Jake Burger. During the 2024 season, he had 29 home runs and 76 RBIs for the Miami Marlins. This is a move that I'm in total agreement with. He's someone who can contribute to this team, hitting wise. He will become a hitting machine alongside Corey Seager and Adolis García.

There's one last player that I'm going to discuss, but before I do that, be sure to subscribe to my page on Vocal. Also, please consider sending me a one-off tip anytime, big or small at the end of this story or any story I've written so far. These tips will encourage creators like me to write more stories. It's crucial for us creators to write these stories in order to show off a bit of our personalities to the world. Finally, please follow me on social media. The info for my pages will be found in my profile. Thank you so much in advance for all of your support in 2024. Let's finish this year on a high note and may 2025 be filled with hope and fulfillment for everyone.

Nathan Eovaldi

There were rumors that he was going to be traded to one of his old teams, the Boston Red Sox. However, the Rangers and the 34-year-old Texas native agreed to a three-year, $75 million dollar deal. Eovaldi, who will turn 35 in February, has been with five different teams. Those were the Dodgers, Marlins, Yankees, Rays, and the aforementioned Red Sox. He won his first World Series title with Boston back in 2018 and five years later, he would win another one with the Rangers. I'm glad that he's returned to the team. One interesting fact that everyone should take notice of is that he went 5-0 to finish the 2023 Postseason. He was one of the driving forces for the Rangers winning their first World Series title. Now a two-time World Series champion, Eovaldi is the glue that keeps the Rangers together, especially the starting rotation. Cliché? Yes, but it's the truth. Rangers fans will be looking forward to what Eovaldi would bring in 2025.

In case you're wondering when the Rangers regular season will begin, it'll be a four-game series at home as they will face the Boston Red Sox March 27-30. It's likely that Nathan Eovaldi would be making a start during one of those games and facing his former team. Spring Training is two months away, so I'm already eager for it to begin.