Anchored by Corey Seager and Marcus Semien, Rangers have intangibles to build a championship culture

It would be easy to get caught in the money. Almost impossible not to. A bit like looking at the video panel across the street in the AT&T stadium. Once you see it you can’t look away anymore.

How much money do the Rangers want to spend this off-season? $ 561 million? Come back?

It’s an MLB record for team free agent spending in one winter. By more than $ 100 million. The Rangers spent it on four players in 24 hours, culminating on Monday with news that they had struck a 10-year deal on shortstop Corey Seager worth $ 325 million, according to multiple industry sources. And they have while the owners continue to claim that there are significant financial flaws in the game that need to be addressed and are ready to shut down the industry on Wednesday night if it doesn’t.

Seager, 27, would sign infielder Marcus Semien (seven years, $ 175 million), pitcher Jon Gray (four years, $ 56 million) and outfielder Kole Calhoun (one year plus option for $ 5.2 million ) once they have passed all the physical exams – Billion Brigade.

The total expenses can increase. The Rangers are still ready to partner with three-time Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw, who still calls Highland Park home. And maybe a field player with change. With all said and done, the total could be more than what Ray Davis and the company spent in 2010 to buy the team out of bankruptcy. It cost her only $ 593 million at the time.

And here’s the thing: as hard as it may be to turn your back on that number – $ 561 million! – it’s not about the money. It’s about the blueprint.

The blueprint of a championship culture.

This is what General Manager Chris Young has talked about endlessly since joining the organization last winter. The Rangers battled their way through a 102-defeat season in 2021, while Young and the organization tried to build infrastructure to be more attractive to championship-caliber players. The front office and the coaching staff have been reorganized. More has been invested in research and development.

Time was spent convincing the real cost of winning, but to be fair, this wasn’t a particularly tough sell after losing five seasons in a row.

And then it was time to act.

The money was just the cost of doing business.

“You have the opportunity to become part of something that has never been seen in Texas Ranger baseball history: to be part of a World Cup team that is built from the ground up,” said Young of his sales pitch for two weeks ago Free Agents. “If you buy stocks, now is the time to buy Rangers stocks. That’s how I feel.”

That and a lot of money convinced.

The two midfielders accounted for 90% of the money spent. The Rangers will also forego the selection of the second and third round in the amateur draft next year. Seager receives a limited no-trade clause. There are no opt-outs.

Semien, 31, got a seven-year deal when the market could have been closer to five or six. The rest of the market didn’t come from a 100 loss season, however. There is little doubt about Semiens Bonafides. He finished third in the AL MVP vote with Toronto in 2021. He finished third twice in the past three years. He’s also an elite self-made defender, ranging from 35 mistakes as a shortstop in the first year to winning a Gold Glove on the second base. But he also had to be convinced of the seriousness of the Rangers.

Once he was, it was easier for others too.

Seager, 27, was NL Rookie of the Year in 2016 and took third place in the MVP vote that season. As of 2016, his .865 OPS on Shortstop in the majors ranks second behind San Diego’s Fernando Tatis, who has 1,400 fewer record appearances.

Seager has played in three World Series and was the MVP of the 2020 World Series, which was played at Globe Life Field in Arlington. By the time 2021 began, he had met more homers at the Rangers’ home ground than any other Ranger.

It gives the Rangers perhaps the best midfield combination in the league, reinforced by Isiah Kiner-Falefa, at least for the moment. Either he gives the Rangers a strong backing or a potential piece of trade.

“I like that you’re building the middle,” said MLB Network analyst and former Colorado GM Dan O’Dowd. “They added an MVP-caliber shortstop and a second MVP-caliber base player. Even if the next year is just a step in the right direction for the Rangers, I like that there is now a core to build around. “

And something else.

“You invest in intangible assets to some extent,” said O’Dowd. “And nobody brings more immaterial values ​​to the table than Marcus Semien. They are good players, but also good team-mates. “

The “championship culture” that Young, baseball operations president Jon Daniels and manager Chris Woodward spoke about so often revolves around talent and those “intangibles.” There is no metric for intangible assets, but there is a cost.

For the guys they wanted, the Rangers were ready to meet them. This wasn’t about just handing out money and finding someone willing to take it.

In a free agent class of middle infielders, which are considered elite, the Rangers took the first two off the market. They have made their decisions and will let others fight for what is left.

As early as July, when the Rangers exchanged Joey Gallo, Kyle Gibson and Ian Kennedy, Daniels declared that the club had to be ready to stop being satisfied with “half measures” when making decisions. At the time he was referring to the demolition of the team. On Monday there was still “no half measures”. But the Rangers have entered an entirely different phase.

And for the players they wanted, the cost was just a number.

Shopping tours

In 24 hours, the Rangers pledged four free agents $ 561 million, making them the biggest off-season spending spree. A look at the four occasions a team has pledged more than $ 350 million in a single winter:

team	year	player	Total expenditure (millions)
ranger	2021-22	Corey Seager ($ 325), Marcus Semien ($ 175), Jon Gray ($ 56), Kole Calhoun ($ 5)	$ 561
Yankees	2008-09	Mark Teixeira ($ 180), CC Sabathia ($ 161), AJ Burnett ($ 82), Andy Pettitte ($ 5)	$ 429
Phillies	2018-19	Bryce Harper ($ 330), Andrew McCutchen ($ 50), David Robertson ($ 23)	$ 403
Yankees	2007-08	Alex Rodriguez ($ 275), Jorge Posada ($ 52), Mariano Rivera ($ 45), Andy Pettitte ($ 16), LaTroy Hawkins ($ 4), Jose Molina ($ 4)	$ 396

Source: Baseball Prospectus

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