Josh Hader is 'Fallback' Option for Texas Rangers, Aroldis Chapman is Out

Several pitching options remain for the Texas Rangers in free agency, including signing both Jordan Montgomery and Josh Hader.

The Texas Rangers view Josh Hader as a “fallback” option, Jordan Montgomery remains a priority and Aroldis Chapman isn’t coming back.

Those are some of the takeaways from a recent report from baseball insider Mark Feinsand on MLB.com. The timeline for the top of the starting pitching market – Blake Snell and Montgomery – may be the holdup in teams signing Hader, considered the top reliever available. From the Feinsand report:

According to sources, some teams that are considering Hader – namely the Yankees and Rangers – are prioritizing rotation help, viewing the All-Star reliever as a fallback plan if they’re unable to land an impact starter.

“If these teams can’t sign a Snell or Montgomery, they may pivot to Hader and build up the back end of the game,” a source said. “He may have to wait a little while.”

The Rangers’ interest in bringing back playoff standout Montgomery is well-documented. The financial commitment that would take wouldn’t necessarily rule of signing Hader, according to Feinsand. Hader is believed to be asking for a deal eclipsing the five-year, $102 million contract that Edwin Díaz signed with the New York Mets last offseason.

But the same report also mentions that Chapman’s time with Texas is done.

The Rangers aren’t in the market for Snell, but the defending World Series champs would like to bring back Montgomery, who played a key role in the club’s title run. Even if the Rangers re-sign Montgomery, adding Hader remains a possibility, as the back end of the bullpen was an issue for most of 2023. Despite a successful October run, Texas’ relief corps is losing free agents Will Smith and Aroldis Chapman, making the need for an arm such as Hader more pressing.

Chapman is a free agent. Smith left earlier this offseason for the Kansas City Royals.

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