The Texas Rangers ace invoked his no-trade clause, shutting down speculation that the team is going to be sellers.
Shortly after the Texas Rangers pulled off their first move of the trade deadline, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported that star pitcher Jacob deGrom invoked his no-trade clause.
There are quite a few pitchers on the market who have a no-trade clause in their contract. Kevin Gausman is one of them, and he recently ended up on the Chicago Cubs after vetoing a deal to numerous other teams.
Here with the Rangers, the team approached deGrom about a potential move, and it's one he clearly didn't want any part of.
It wouldn't necessarily make sense for the Rangers to have a fire sale, and at the time of writing, it doesn't seem like that'll be the case.
They're still battling for a division title, and at the very least, could sneak into a Wild Card spot in an extremely weak American League.
deGrom isn't going anywhere
"The Texas Rangers approached right-hander Jacob deGrom about waiving his no-trade clause, but the pitcher told the team he wanted to remain with the club," Rosenthal wrote.
Upon signing his five-year, $185 million deal back in late 2022, the Rangers gave deGrom "full no-trade protection."
Clearly, he's putting that to use. While deGrom may be safe, Rosenthal named Corey Seager and Nathan Eovaldi as two players who could be on the chopping block. With the deadline mere hours away, it'll be extremely interesting to see how things play out.
Starting pitcher market loses a big name
It's not like deGrom was ever a top name on the market, especially since teams knew he had a no-trade clause, but there's always room for speculation. Now, officially all of that can be put to rest.
deGrom, 38, is 7-7 this season with a 3.96 ERA. His 1.14 WHIP nearly puts him among the top 20 pitchers in all of baseball, and he's currently tied for 17th with his 135 strikeouts.
The Florida native wants to make a push for the postseason with this Rangers team, and for good reason. They may currently be slumping in the wrong direction, but this team has the talent to put their best foot forward and still win the division.
There's no doubt deGrom will be a strong part of that; it's just a matter of who is able to get back on track and who else, if anyone, they acquire in these final hours.
deGrom's next scheduled start is on Friday, August 7, in the Rangers' fourth game of a six-game homestand.
