As a manager, you really can’t ask for more than what Chris Young gave Bruce Bochy ahead of the deadline this year.
The Rangers have had an elite offense all season long, but most of their issues have come on the mound. The bullpen has gone through some rough stretches, while the rotation has had to deal with injuries. The emergence of Dane Dunning has been an enormous plus, but Jacob deGrom barely pitched and now Nathan Eovaldi is hurt.
Texas was aggressive in advance of Tuesday 6 p.m. ET trade deadline, adding Max Scherzer from the Mets before swinging a deal with the Cardinals that brought them Jordan Montgomery and reliever Chris Stratton.
Those additions should be more than enough to not only help the Rangers tread water while others are injured, but it should also give them an impressive collection of arms for the postseason.
Bochy was thrilled during his weekly appearance on the K&C Masterpiece.
“Oh man, I'm pumped,” Bochy said. “I'll tell you what, it's a better rotation with these guys in there. Max did a bullpen yesterday, I was down there for it. Montgomery, he's having a good year, and these are two experienced guys that are going to strengthen and bolster our pitching staff.
"Stratton is someone who has pitched for me. He's got experience, he can pitch in high leverage situations, you can use him multiple innings, he can spin it and has a good fastball and commands his fastball. So, he'll fit right in as a permanent sixth- or seventh-inning, use him that way.
“We needed some help. I think it's fair to say if you look at what was going on this month, we were taking on a little water with the rotation. So, I think this will strengthen with Nate needing some time, it certainly gives us a little piece of mind to know we've got a couple nice arms to put in the rotation.”
Things are going to heat up the final two months for the Rangers. Fending off the Astros for the division title won't be easy, and the Angels buying suggests they think it’s at least conceivable they can be competitive down the stretch.
Regardless of how things end up shaking out for Texas, suffice to say Young has done his job to put his team in a position to win.
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