The first major transactions of the Rangers‘ offseason are upon us.
The mutual options for designated hitter Joc Pederson, catcher Kyle Higashioka and right-handed pitcher Jakob Junis will not be exercised, a person with direct knowledge of the decision confirmed to The Dallas Morning News, and all three will become free agents. In the case of a mutual option, both the team and the player must agree to exercise it, unlike a team or player option, which are both one-sided.
The most notable is Pederson, who signed a two-year, $37 million contract prior to last season, and will now enter into what’s considered a relatively weak free agent class. He played two Jekyll and Hyde seasons with the Rangers, the first in which he was one of the club’s least productive hitters, the second in which he was one of the club’s most productive hitters. He slashed just .181/.285/.328 with 9 home runs in 96 games last season, had a franchise-record 0 for 41 hitless streak and missed a third of the season because of a broken hand. In his second campaign with the Rangers, he slashed .235/.329/.487, hit 26 home runs and was one of the American League’s most effective leadoff hitters.
ESPN’s Jesse Rogers first reported that Pederson declined his end of the mutual option.
Rangers president of baseball operations Chris Young said that the team needed to become “younger,” “more athletic” and “more dynamic” at his end-of-season news conference last month. Pederson — the team’s oldest every day position player last season who was limited to the designated hitter position for myriad reasons — was the antithesis of all three to an extent. The Rangers, so long as they don’t acquire another designted-hitter-only player this winter, can now rotate players like shortstop Corey Seager, third baseman Josh Jung and second baseman Justin Foscue in and out of the designated hitter position if they choose.
Higashioka signed a two-year, $13.5 million contract with the Rangers prior to last season, but struggled to remain healthy during his tenure. The 36-year-old played in just 152 of a possible 324 games in two seasons and spent two seperate stints on the injured list. He was relatively effective when available, with a 98 OPS+ in two seasons, but couldn’t be counted on as a starting-caliber catcher.
Junis served as the club’s setup man in the bullpen for much of the season but stumbled late. He had a 2.80 ERA in 31 games before the All-Star break, a 5.21 ERA in 22 games after it and battled nagging health issues in the second half of the season.
The decisions helped slightly clear the club’s books, though even if the Rangers let each of their own free agents walk, their payroll for next season stands at around $170 million before any potential external acquisitions are factored in. The mutual options for all three players were valued at a combined $30.5 million for next season.