Joc Pederson Is Returning to the Texas Rangers
Joc Pederson is returning to the Texas Rangers next season after he exercised his $18.5 million player option.
He was brought in last offseason to bring some thump to the lineup and be an offensive threat for the Rangers.
It didn’t turn out the way he had hoped, as he had a disappointing year offensively. He slashed .181/.285/.328 with nine home runs on the year. Those are extremely disappointing stats for a guy making as much as he does. He ended up falling into the funk that many Rangers players did, contributing to the underperforming offense.
Overall, it was a really rough season for him, as he went 0-for-41 during a streak. That pretty much summed up his season, as he seemed always to be a step behind the pitchers.
He did have a strong August, hitting .286 with six home runs and 15 RBIs, showing the player the Rangers expected when they signed him.
Pederson will likely be the designated hitter next year, as the Rangers hope he can break out of this funk and be the hitter who punishes right-handed pitching.
He struggled through the rest of the year, and the Rangers are unlikely to offload his contract in a trade due to his price tag and the lack of production he provided.
This will lead them to have to figure out other contracts for players like Marcus Semien, Adolis Garcia, and Jonah Heim, as well as others with bigger price tags.
All Rangers fans can do is trust that Chris Young will make the right choices and hope that Joc Pederson will be able to bounce back and turn back into the version of him that hit .275 with 23 home runs with the Diamondbacks the previous year.
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