The Texas Rangers have finalized deals with Josh Smith, Jake Burger, Josh Jung and Ezequiel Duran, their four unsigned arbitration-eligible players, according to Shawn McFarland of the DMN. No details as of yet on the amount each player will receive.
The Rangers had nine arbitration-eligible players on November 21 — the deadline to tender contracts to players under team control but not under contract. The Rangers reached an agreement with one of those four, Sam Haggerty, and non-tendered Adolis Garcia,
Jonah Heim, Josh Sborz and Jacob Webb.
As Rangers fans know, the team has not had an arbitration hearing with a player since 2000, when they were unable to reach a deal with Lee Stevens. As it turned out, Stevens didn’t even play for the Rangers in 2000, as he was dealt to the Montreal Expos during spring training in a three-way deal that sent Brad Fullmer to Toronto from Montreal, and David Segui and cash to the Rangers from the Jays.
