Winter Meetings promise mystery for Rangers

Texas seeking 3rd new starter after Fister, Minor additions

December 10th, 2017

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. -- The third guest was always the Mystery Guest in the classic television show "What's My Line?"
The panelists had to put the blindfolds on before Arlene Francis or Dorothy Kilgallen could figure out the identity of that night's big celebrity guest.
That's the way it is with the Rangers, who have already unveiled Doug Fister and Mike Minor as the first two additions to their rotation this offseason. It would seem Texas has one more big addition coming to a unit that already includes Cole Hamels and .
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That's the question everybody is wondering as the Winter Meetings begin on Monday: Will it be a "big name" addition or -- as in the case of Minor -- somebody unforeseen going into the offseason? The Rangers have been known to be creative and aggressive.
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"It's still early in the process," general manager Jon Daniels said. "We are not going to rule anything out."

So welcome again to another Winter Meetings, this one being held in the shadow of Disney World. While the tourists and guest browse the shops and that Winter Meetings staple "'Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" by Brenda Lee plays over and over again, the Rangers will be shopping for more pitching.
Starting pitching is the top priority, with the familiar names -- , Alex Cobb, , -- all in play if the Rangers want to shake things up after losing out on Shohei Ohtani. Darvish would certainly create a stir.
Texas will also be looking for bullpen help, although it remains a mystery if Daniels will go for the big name closer or for more setup/middle-innings help.
"It's still something that we are looking to add, too," Daniels said. "I expect we will between now and Opening Day. We are still working through that and looking at a variety of options."
There is also the possibility the Rangers could have a quiet week. The four days that constitute the Winter Meetings offer the possibility of face-to-face meetings between teams and agents, but hardly guarantees that deals will get done. Often, the requisite physicals hold up any official announcements until after everybody gets home.

From a Texas standpoint, the biggest announcement could come Tuesday when the J.G. Taylor Spink Award is announced by the BBWAA for meritorious contribution to baseball writing. Long-time Fort Worth Star-Telegram writer Jim Reeves is among the nominees.
MLB.com's 30 beat reporters are at Disney World too, so stay tuned to rangers.com all week for updates on the club's progress. Also, manager Jeff Banister will meet with the media on Tuesday and the Rule 5 Draft will be held Thursday morning. It was three years ago the Rangers took from the Astros.
It's that time of the year.