While the Rangers have been finished playing games for about three weeks now, there are still some developments of note evolving around the team in October.

Elvis Andrus reportedly opts in to three years remaining on his deal
The often over-opinionated Jon Heyman of MLB Network tweeted on Friday that the 30 year old Andrus would not be exercising the option to opt out of the potentially final three years of his deal that will more or less pay him $15 million per year through 2022.

Elvis Andrus will not opt out of the $43M and 3 years remaining on his Rangers deal, remains their SS. Not a surprise. 2019 wasn’t his best season.

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) October 18, 2019

Following 2016 and 2017 campaigns that were All-Star worthy, Andrus has taken a step back in 2018 and 2019. A broken bone in his elbow early in 2018 derailed a season that saw him get off to a torching start at the plate, but his bat never truly recovered when he came back for the second half of that season.  While he played a relatively full campaign in 2019 with 147 games, the all-around offense from Andrus just wasn’t what the Rangers needed it to be.

With just 34 walks on the year, the OPS for Elvis was a very unimpressive .707.  Even Rougned Odor and his .205 batting average had a higher OPS this season at .721.  Considering Elvis once had 64 walks back in his second MLB season in 2010, a dip down to 34 in what should be a prime year is concerning.  While his baserunning prowess did return with 31 stolen bases, his most since 2013, he probably could have easily eclipsed 40 swipes if he found himself on base more often.

Factoring in how the MLB free agent market has developed the last few winters, it was a wise move for Elvis to take his guaranteed money and run.  Also considering how much of a stalwart he has become in the clubhouse and DFW community now with a beautiful wife and two adorable young children, it probably would have taken a lot to tempt Andrus away from the Rangers.

Ron Washington to become manager of the Padres?
The rumblings around San Diego are beginning to hint that former Rangers skipper Ron Washington could be the next manager of the San Diego Padres.

Kevin Acee "I Believe That Ron Washington is the Favorite" @dsmithshow @martycaswell #sandiego https://t.co/mnFsJOFB68

— XTRA 1360 (@XTRA1360) October 18, 2019

Kevin Acee of The San Diego Union-Tribune has reported this week that the 67 year old Washington and current Rangers development coach Jayce Tingler are more or less the final pair interviewing to land the Padres job.

After leaving the Rangers in September 2014 under foggy circumstances, Washington has mostly stayed out of the top of the DFW sports fan’s mind with third base coaching gigs in Oakland and Atlanta.

A true fan-favorite, it was great to see Washington back at Globe Life Park when he was introduced to a raucous ovation when he surprised Michael Young at his number retirement ceremony back on August 31st.

Ron Washington came back for Michael Young’s 10 jersey retirement. The #Rangers crowd went wild. @NBCDFWSports pic.twitter.com/guXR8dqY54

— Newy Scruggs (@newyscruggs) August 31, 2019

If Wash were to land the Padres gig, he would be working with some familiar faces as Padres GM A.J. Preller was a prominent figure in the Texas front office during Washington’s tenure from 2007-2014 and former Rangers second baseman Ian Kinsler is under contract with the Padres in 2020 after signing a multi-year deal there last winter.

Offseason targets/to-do list nominees
Josh Donaldson is out of the playoffs with the Braves.  Anthony Rendon and Gerrit Cole are still very much alive and boosting their value this winter with every second they’re on the field. Cole seems to be destined for the biggest free agent deal for a starting pitcher in several years and who knows if the Rangers will even be invited to the table.

An interesting article was posted this week from the great Levi Weaver of The Athletic DFW exploring what it could look like if the Rangers tried to negotiate a Joey Gallo extension with the powerful Scott Boras this winter. The 25 year old Gallo has three arbitration years remaining and cannot become a free agent until after the 2022 season, at the earliest.  After an All-Star caliber first two months of the season, Gallo’s value becomes iffy after an injury-riddled June through September that limited Gallo to just 70 games overall in 2019.  It’s a tough way to begin negotiations, but Jon Daniels and company need to at least plant the seeds of interest this winter. A full season of Gallo producing at the rate he did early this season could make him due for an ENORMOUS contract one year from now.

Globe Life Park lives on… kind of?

Globe Life Park lives on. pic.twitter.com/MX2QEFCLXm

— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) October 17, 2019

Who’s paying for those seats that has a blocked view by the left field foul pole?

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Keep checking back with Dallas Sports Fanatic this winter as we’ll continue to cover the Rangers important offseason before moving into Globe Life Field in the spring.