Staff Roundtable: What will the Rangers roster look like after the trade deadline?

With the Rangers entering this season with tempered expectations following a very unassertive offseason, the way the team started out would determine their approach with shaping the roster the rest of the season.  An 8-17 start paired with injuries to the likes of Elvis Andrus, Adrian Beltre and Rougned Odor caused this team to essentially play themselves out of the playoff race before the calendar even read mid-May.  Texas hasn’t done much to play themselves back into contention as every two or three game winning streak is followed by a three or four game losing streak.  It is a beyond frustrating season for all parties involved.

As we now sit in mid-June and the draft came and went last week, it’s not unreasonable to think the trade winds could start to swirl aggressively pretty soon.  The mix of youth and veterans on the Rangers roster makes them a prime candidate for some major roster overhaul once the trade deadline comes around.

A few Dallas Sports Fanatic writers — Darien Clark, Dylan Duell and Garrett Jones — took the time to share their thoughts on and predict what lineup manager Jeff Banister may be putting together come August 1st.

The Lineups

Darien                                          Dylan                                          Garrett

C Robinson Chirinos	C Robinson Chirinos	C Robinson Chirinos
1B Ronald Guzman	1B Ronald Guzman	1B Ronald Guzman
2B Rougned Odor	2B Rougned Odor	2B Rougned Odor
SS Elvis Andrus	SS Elvis Andrus	SS Elvis Andrus
3B Isiah Kiner-Falefa/Adrian Beltre	3B Jurickson Profar	3B Isiah Kiner-Falefa
LF Willie Calhoun	LF Joey Gallo	LF Joey Gallo
CF Delino DeShields	CF Delino DeShields	CF Delino DeShields
RF Nomar Mazara	RF Nomar Mazara	RF Nomar Mazara
DH Adrian Beltre	DH Willie Calhoun	DH Beltre/Shin-Soo Choo

Unanimous Roster Move: Cole Hamels traded
Garrett: Hamels has been a valuable asset and a true ace for Texas since he was traded to the team in 2015. When he was acquired from Philadelphia, the move was not only to jolt the team into contention that season, but to stabilize the rotation from 2016 onward. With the team out of contention and Texas desperately in need of stabilizing its farm system, Hamels will command a lot of value on the trade market, and his veteran left-handed arm will be a sought-after commodity from contending teams.

Disagreement on Beltre’s Future
Dylan: I don’t know what kind of package he would fetch, but I think the team respects Beltre too much for him to have to suffer through the final few months of this season and them having very little need to spend whatever it takes to re-sign him this winter when his contract expires.  Jurickson Profar’s consistent ability to get on base and drive in runs will be enough to give the team confidence in making him the starting third baseman for the final few months of this season and going into 2019 as well.

Wild card move: A Cole Hamels/Joey Gallo package to Atlanta
Darien: I look at Atlanta’s farm system, which is currently ranked number two in the MLB. They have eight, top 100 prospects and six of them are pitching prospects, (according to MLB.com) which is exactly what the Ranger’s organization is looking to build on exponentially. Aside from taking two starting pitchers early in the recent draft, our farm system could use much more and Atlanta has exactly that and then some. Atlanta’s squad, aside from their insane farm system is catching fire this season and is primed for a run deep into the playoffs. Why not ship a package of Hamels and Gallo for three or four of their top 20 prospects that really won’t go missed considering how deep their system runs?

These won’t be the only moves made.  Other callups will be made.  Some major leaguers might be releaserd (Cough, Matt Moore, cough).  Whatever the case, the Texas Rangers roster will have some major changes made over the next several months.