Top Offseason Priority For Texas Rangers? Chris Young Lays Out Needs, Including Core Players 'Bouncing Back'

Texas Rangers President of Baseball Operations Chris Young said pitching remains a top priority this offseason, but also helping core starters bounce back from down years.

Jun 21, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers general manager Chris Young (left) and Kansas City Royals general manager J.J. Picollo (right) talk before the game against the Kansas City Royals at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images / Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images

ARLINGTON — Like most teams, the Texas Rangers will be looking for pitching this winter, both starters and relievers.

Whether that comes in the form or resigning some of the arms currently on their roster for two more weeks, or seeking fresh blood, the club's President of Baseball Operations Chris Young will be tasked with rounding out a rotation and restocking a bullpen.

As for the questions about their everyday players, Young isn't so sure the answers aren't already on the roster.

"We've got some some position player spots that are going to be priorities as well, and some of those answers may be internal answers, in terms of just getting our guys to perform more consistently like they did in 2023," Young said. "We have had some players with down years, and we need those guys to bounce back, and those may be the single best improvements we can make to the club. So that's going to be a very, very high priority for us in terms of getting the best out of our own players."

Those players include catcher Jonah Heim, outfielder Adolis Garcia, and first baseman Nathaniel Lowe. Others, including Josh Jung and perhaps Evan Carter, were less productive because of injuries, but will be expected to return to form in 2025.

Young said he's unsure of the budget constraints he'll be working with this winter.

"That's to be determined," he said. "I'll sit down with [Rangers owner] Ray [Davis] and talk through that over the coming weeks and really evaluate where the payroll will be, what we have in terms of creative spending. We'll evaluate the market from every angle, whether it's free agency, trades, and, of course, internally with our player development system, and put together the best team possible for next year."

Young is confident, however, that no wholesale change is necessary to the roster, a year removed from winning the club's first World Series championship. He believes that certain players such as Heim, Lowe and rookie Wyatt Langford — although he named no names — are capable of producing similar to their 2023 seasons, and in the case of Langford, continue to show a steady line of improvement in his second MLB season.

"The core group is in place, and I'm really excited about that, but we need to round out the edges," he said. "We need to continue building on that core group and really get back to how we performed last season."

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