Wednesday Newsletter: With Ohtani gone, are Seager and Semien the best players in the AL now?

The Texas Rangers’ social media team has been actively keeping track of offseason transactions in baseball, following their successful postseason run. One of the biggest moves that everyone is aware of is Shohei Ohtani going to the Dodgers for a massive contract. However, the exact terms of the deal seem to be a bit of a mystery.

With Ohtani leaving the American League, the Rangers have declared that Corey Seager and Marcus Semien are now the two best players in the league. This claim is supported by the fact that Ohtani won the AL MVP award, with Seager and Semien finishing in second and third place, respectively.

While Seager and Semien are strong contenders, there are other players like Aaron Judge, Mike Trout, and Julio Rodriguez who could also be considered for the title of the AL’s top player. Nevertheless, Seager and Semien have shown their skills and potential, especially with Seager being an exceptional hitter and Yandy Diaz winning the AL batting title.

The Rangers seem to be hopeful that they will get their money’s worth from Seager and Semien, as they appear to be solid additions to the team. As for the free-agent market, it is starting to gain momentum now that Ohtani has signed with the Dodgers. The San Francisco Giants have signed Korean outfielder Jung Hoo Lee to a substantial contract.

However, the market for pitchers seems to be at a standstill, possibly due to the ongoing negotiations with Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto, a star from Japan, has met with multiple teams and is expected to sign a lucrative deal worth at least $200 million. The Rangers have shown interest in Yamamoto but face competition from other teams like the New York clubs and the Boston Red Sox.

Historically, the Rangers have had a trend of seeing their players end up with other teams, similar to what happened with the Orioles during the Rangers’ previous World Series years. Now it seems the Kansas City Royals might become the new destination for Rangers players, with Chris Stratton and Will Smith recently signing one-year deals with the Royals. The Rangers have also added Drayton Moore, the former Royals president, as an assistant to their general manager, Chris Young.

In unrelated news, the Rangers shared a good-luck message with students currently going through their final exams.