The Texas Rangers are turning to Chris Paddack, with reports saying the club is signing the free-agent right-hander to a major league deal.
It’s the kind of move that tells you exactly where Texas stands with its rotation. Jack Leiter is out until at least August because of ankle surgery, and the Rangers’ need for starting pitching depth has been obvious for a while. This just makes it louder.
Paddack has been on the move all year. He’ll be the Rangers’ third team this season and his fifth since the start of the 2025 season.
Last season, Minnesota dealt him to Detroit at the trade deadline because the Tigers were hunting for pitching help too. He made six starts for Detroit, gave up 17 runs in 24 innings, then slid into mop-up work and even got the start in the 2025 finale.
For the 2025 season, he finished with a 5.35 ERA, 5.03 FIP and 5.01 xERA.
This year brought another round of instability. Paddack signed with the Miami Marlins on the eve of camp, was released in May, then caught on with the Cincinnati Reds before they let him go last week. In the 2026 season, he has a 6.96 ERA, 4.78 FIP and 4.89 xERA.
His early career still stands out as the high point. Paddack was excellent over his first 18 major league starts with the Padres in 2019.
Since then, though, he’s mostly been either ineffective or hurt. That’s not the profile a contender usually wants in a rotation addition, but the Rangers are clearly operating in a different lane right now.
Texas does have an open spot on the 40-man roster, so no move is needed there. An active-roster spot will have to be cleared, though, and Winston Santos looks like the likely casualty. He was brought up as an emergency length arm and is expected to handle innings against the Guardians today in a game Tyler Alexander is starting before heading back to Triple-A once Paddack is activated.
The Rangers are also hoping this doesn’t have to last long. Jordan Montgomery is currently on a rehab assignment, and the expectation is that he could be back in the majors by the end of July. With the upcoming off days and the All-Star break, Texas may only need two or three starts from Paddack.
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