Texas Rangers make mega-deals with SS Seager, 2B Semien

ARLINGTON, Texas – Corey Seager and Marcus Semien were well aware of the Texas Rangers ’102 losses last year and five consecutive losses.

Worth a half-billion-dollar midfield, they are now working together to turn things around in Texas.

“They were very open and honest about how many games they have lost and where they are currently in the organization and where their views are,” Seager said. “And it’s something we wanted to embrace. … I love its work, the passion, the passion for the game, doing it the right way and getting the right people. It always depends on the people.”

Rangers completed $ 325 million on Wednesday, its 10-year deal with Seager, a double All-Star match, and its $ 175 million seven-year deal with Semien co-founder Gold Glove.

When Semien was the first to sign the deal, he harassed their agent Scott Boras to make sure Seager followed suit.

“The seven-year deal is part of it, you have to look back to where this team is right now,” Semien said. “I heard they wanted to add some of the top players in the market. No players. Players.”

The middle indoor players are part of the Rangers MLB record $ 561.2 offseason consumption attack, which included right-hander Jon Gray with $ 56 million in four seasons and outdoor player Kole Calhou with a $ 5.2 million contract next year.

Seager received a $ 5 million signing bonus, earning $ 32.5 million next season, before reaching a peak of $ 35 million in 2023. He will earn $ 34.5 million in 2024, $ 32 million in 2025 and $ 31 million in the six contracts. during the last year.

The value of the Semien agreement without opt-out rights is $ 25 million next season, $ 26 million in 2023-27 and $ 20 million in the final year 2028.

All contracts were completed one hour before the end of MLB’s five-year collective bargaining agreement with the Major League Baseball Players Association at 10:59 p.m. Texas time, which is expected to lead to a management lockout.

The 27-year-old Seager played his first seven major leagues at the Los Angeles Dodgers, playing 16 consecutive post-season games at Globe Life Field in Arlington during the changed season of the pandemic in 2020 on his way to his first World Series championship since 1988.

“I was so lucky that I was chosen by a team that won right away. You’re growing fast. You’re learning to be a professional. You’re learning to do it right,” Seager said before stumbling.

Seager tried a couple of times to note the magnitude of the “achievement” that brings the title back to Los Angeles before handing it over and saying, “Oh my God. It was exciting. I’m not going to try to say it again.”

Rangers manager Chris Woodward, who had previously coached both of Seager’s brothers, smiled nearby. Before Woodward spent three seasons with Dodgers as a third base coach and Corey field director, he was on Seattle staff with Kyle Seager and minors with Justin Seager.

When Woodward left Dodgers after the 2018 season to become Manager of the Rangers, he challenged Seager again as leader, leaving a few pieces of advice he hoped would push him toward that role.

“It’s hard to believe he’s in Ranger uniform right now. I’m squeezing myself a little bit,” Woodward said. “We have so much in common, a shared vision of this organization and the impact he has on the field, apparently with his performance, but in the clubhouse.”

Seager was an MVP in both the World Series and the NL Championship on the Rangers home football field. He hit 0.350 with seven home games and 19 RBIs, including a fast-paced RBI World Series win from Tampa Bay in the 6th playoffs.

He hit .306 in 16 home games and 57 RBIs in 95 games this year as he broke his right finger after getting hit on the field on May 15 and left 2½ months away. He is a 0.297 winner in his career with 104 home wins and 364 RBIs in 636 games.

Semien was short-circuited for six seasons in Oakland between 2015 and 2020, before starting 147 matches at another base and playing all 162 matches in Toronto this year. He signed a $ 18 million one-year contract with Blue Jays in a free agency last season.

The 31-year-old Semien reached 0.265 and set a career record with 45 home trips, 102 RBIs and 15 stolen bases in his only season in Toronto. 45 home players set an MLB record for another player. He finished third in the AL MVP vote, as he did in 2019, when he played all 162 matches in Athletics, achieving 0.285 with 33 home wins and 92 RBIs.

“I’m not asking Marcus to be anything other than himself, and that’s enough,” Woodward said. “This is the kind of player you’re building around. I think he’s a perfect fit for our culture, and I’m deeply grateful he chose us. I told him he’s the first real mainstay to establish himself in the Texas Ranger uniform. He took a leap of faith. to us. “