It was also one of the easiest option calls of the winter. Pederson’s first season in Arlington was terrible. He signed as a near-full-time design hitter who would tee off against right-handed pitching. Instead, he hit .181/.285/.328 with nine home runs over 306 trips to the plate. He started the year slowly, broke his right hand when he was hit by a pitch in May and was only marginally better in the second half. Pederson had a strong August, but otherwise struggled throughout the year.
On the open market, he obviously wouldn’t have commanded anywhere near an $18.5 million salary. That made it a no-brainer to stay for what he hopes will be a rebound season. Pederson hit a .275/.393/.515 clip with the Diamondbacks two seasons ago. The Rangers likely don’t have much choice but to run it back with him as their primary DH. They wouldn’t be able to cash in more than a few million dollars in a trade.
Texas will likely reshape the offense through transactions or non-tendering, among others Adolis Garcia, Jonah Heim And Jos Jung. It would be harder for them to find a buyer for the underwater Pederson and… Marcus Semien offers. It would be surprising if they were trading Corey Seagerwhose contract would be unaffordable for all but a handful, and who is still one of the team’s top two or three hitters.
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