Texas Rangers 2019 Positional Review: Second Base
The Rangers situation at second base going into 2019 was highly anticipated. There was going to be tremendous focus on how the core of this Rangers team would react to the new information Chris Woodward and the new regime would throw at them.
One of the most intriguing players in anticipation of 2019 was Rougned Odor. As we all know by now, Odor broke out in 2015 and 2016, helping the Rangers win back-to-back division titles. His performance in those season helped him land a six-year contract.
On the heels of signing that contract, 2017 was a horrendous year for Odor, despite playing in all 162 games and hitting 30 home runs. He was statistically the worst starting second baseman in baseball. 2018 saw a bit of a bounce back for Rougie, especially with a noticeable improvement defensively.
Unfortunately, the 2019 version of Odor was closer to the 2017 version rather than the 2018 or, as some may have hoped, the 2015-2016 version. Odor finished with a -0.3 WAR and his defense regressed to a -8 Defensive Runs Saved. He also struck out 178 times, setting a new unwanted career-high.
Odor did hit 30 home runs, the fourth time he's met that mark in his career. In comparison to 2017, his On-Base Percentage (OBP) was 30 points higher in 2019 and his OPS was .721, just barely below the league average for his position.
Overall, the Rangers were 5th in the American League in OPS collectively at second base with a mark of .755. Nick Solak and Danny Santana helped elevate that number with massive offensive production from second base. Santana had an OPS of .840 in 63 plate appearances while Solak raked with a 1.017 OPS in a very small sample size of 21 plate appearances.
2020 Outlook
Projected starter: Rougned Odor
Internal Options: Danny Santana, Nick Solak
Offseason Priority: LOW
As far as the front office and coaching staff is concerned, they have their starting second baseman in Rougned Odor. He has three years and $34 million left on his contract before they could opt out after the 2022 season.
In his end-of-season press conference, Jon Daniels wasn't afraid to admit that Odor has to be better. His performance in 2017 and 2019 have to be cause for concern. Even his 2018 season, while had better overall numbers, was very inconsistent.
If Odor continues to struggle and really brings down the rest of the lineup, Texas does have options with Danny Santana and Nick Solak. The Rangers prefer for Santana to be their super-utility player and love his versatility and the value that brings to the team.
Solak could be a very interesting player. A second-round pick by the Yankees in 2016, the Rangers acquired him for Peter Fairbanks from the Tampa Bay Rays in July. Solak performed very well in a limited capacity, but he left a good impression. If things with Odor get really bad, Solak's right-handed bat may get a larger opportunity.
Even if the Rangers thought about free agency as a possibility to make Rougie uncomfortable, there is almost nothing in the market.
On the other hand, a trade, albeit unlikely, could be the only way the Rangers shake things up at second base. Teams like Boston and the Chicago Cubs are looking to shed salary and have pitchers they are willing to deal. Maybe the Rangers, who are in desperate need of pitching, potentially deal Odor to acquire pitching and help those teams reduce their bloated payroll.
In all likelihood, the Rangers will go into 2020 with Rougned Odor as their starting second baseman. They won't be actively shopping him. They also won't commit to saying any player is untouchable. If the right offer came along, Jon Daniels would have to at least consider it. That will become more relevant when we review the corner outfield spots.
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