Friday Newsletter time: Has the Seiya Suzuki ship sailed on Texas Rangers?
Multiple reports this week are suggesting that the Japanese star has targeted several other teams.
The volume of Seiya Suzuki news the past few days has been curiously high, considering baseball is in a lockout and teams and agents and players aren’t permitted to speak to each other.
I’m sure everything has been above board the past two months.
The Texas Rangers are interested in Suzuki, an outfielder who batted .317 with 38 homers and a 1.069 OPS last season in Nippon Professional Baseball. He reportedly spoke to eight teams before the lockout, and while it’s not confirmed, it’s assumed the Rangers are one of them.
At the very least, they were informed that Suzuki wouldn’t be signing before the lockout.
The reporting has varied pretty wildly on where he’s going to land. A report in Japan said the Red Sox are the favorites, while another report there said that the Giants, Cubs, Mariners and Padres are the favorites because they all hold spring training in Arizona.
Peter Gammons also reported that baseball general managers believe the Giants are the favorite.
What does all of that mean for the Rangers? Maybe nothing.
Suzuki is planning to travel to the U.S. to meet with teams face to face before making his decision. Very few expected the Rangers go land Marcus Semien or Corey Seager, and the Rangers signed both of them.
An argument can be made that the Rangers don’t need Suzuki. I made it last week. But he might come at the kind of value that president of baseball operations Jon Daniels can’t resist an attempt to sign him.
If the heavy volume of noise is any indication, the Rangers are out. In the midst of a lockout, though, no one is supposed to know with any degree of certainty.
Rangers now hiring
Anyone looking for some income might want to take a look at working for the Rangers — no, not as uniformed on-field personnel.
The Rangers and Delaware North, the team’s hospitality partner, will hold a job fair Saturday from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. for seasonal work for the upcoming season at Globe Life Field and across the street at Choctaw Stadium.
The fair is scheduled to be held at the Globe Life Field North Plaza between the ballpark and the Arlington Backyard at Texas Live.
Anyone 16 and older can receive information and apply for work. Interviews will also be conducted at the event.
Here’s which positions are available with the Rangers: guest services, parking, security, tours, concierge, raffle seller, promotions and ticket office assistant.
And with Delaware North: Concessions, retail, warehouse, fine dining and culinary.
Visit texasrangers.com/jobs for more information or to apply online.
Card of the Week
Infielder Davis Wendzel is the guest on the latest episode of the Texas Rangers Baseball Podcast.
It would only be fitting to make Wendzel’s 2019 Bowman Chrome rookie the Card of the Week. The problem is that I don’t have one of those in my collection … yet.
However, I have a few of last week’s podcast guest, Evan Carter. So, the Card of the Week is Carter’s 2020 Leaf Draft rookie auto.
If you haven’t listened to the Carter episode, do so here. He’s only 19, but he speaks as if he’s much older.
If you haven’t listened to Wendzel, click the Spotify link below. If you haven’t listened to either, shame on you.
Doggy video!
Me, just trying to watch the game. Enjoy. See you Monday.
Anyone with kids has experienced what that dog was going through.
Suzuki would be great for speeding up the timeline window. Truth is, given what the club has already done, he's icing.
If he goes elsewhere, I'd plan to audition Solak, Thompson, Wendzel, Duran, in that order with a belief that one of them seizes the everyday LF spot on a contending Rangers club by mid 23, certainly by opening day 24, with bigger aspirations in mind.