Texas Rangers Going All In, Trade For Two Cardinals Pitchers

The Texas Rangers added more depth to their pitching staff before the MLB trade deadline by trading for a St. Louis Cardinals starter and reliever.

The Texas Rangers are going all-in for the 2023 postseason, and it starts by strengthening their pitching staff. 

The Rangers have traded for St. Louis Cardinals left-handed starter Jordan Montgomery and right-handed reliever Chris Stratton. 

Texas will send St. Louis left-hander John King, along with infield prospect Thomas Saggese and right-handed pitching prospect Tekoah Roby. The Cardinals (40-60) have been one of baseball's more disappointing clubs in 2023 and began their fire sale Sunday by trading closer Jordan Hicks to the Toronto Blue Jays. 

With a one-game lead over the Houston Astros for the AL West pennant going into Sunday, Texas has proven its desire to go for it and claim the division for the first time since 2016. Late Saturday evening, the Rangers finalized a deal to land New York Mets ace and former Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer in exchange for middle infield prospect Luisangel Acuna.

Montgomery, 30, has been inconsistent, but a change of scenery could do wonders for his numbers down the stretch. In 21 starts, the left-hander posted a 6-9 record with a 3.45 ERA and 1.25 WHIP. He struck out 108 batters and posted a 2.1 WAR in 121 innings pitched. 

Stratton, 32, should provide bullpen relief during the middle innings. He's appeared in 42 games for St. Louis, boasting a 4.36 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP and a .01 WAR. Stratton has allowed 17 walks against 59 strikeouts and recorded one save in 53.2 innings pitched. 

Montgomery and Stratton are potentially "rentals," as both are set to be free agents after the season.

The Rangers now have options to their starting rotation behind Scherzer, Nathan Eovaldi and Jon Gray. Eovaldi, who hasn't pitched since July 18, will miss time after being placed on the 15-day injured list after being scratched from his start in Sunday's finale against the San Diego Padres. 

Scherzer, Gray and Montgomery will almost certainly be in the rotation, while the Rangers must decide what to do with Dane Dunning, Andrew Heaney and Martín Pérez.

Both Heaney and Pérez have been uneven this season. Heaney hasn’t pitched at least six innings in a start since late May. Pérez has given up 18 home runs and his ERA is 4.98 after being 2.89 last year.

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