Texas Rangers Morning Roundup: Nathan Eovaldi battles for 7 innings. Will it be his final start for Rangers?

Eovaldi took a no-decision as the Rangers were walked off at Oakland. He can be a free agent after the season and will be the Rangers’ top offseason priority.

A hitter can fall into a slump without much notice, and lord knows the Texas Rangers have had their share of batters slump this season.

A starting pitcher can slump, too, though it’s harder to follow because he doesn’t play every day. Nathan Eovaldi would probably say that he finished his season in a slump.

The hope among the Rangers, their fans and Eovaldi himself is that this isn’t the end of his time with the Rangers.

He took a no-decision Tuesday night as the Rangers took a 5-4 walk-off loss at Oakland. He allowed four runs (three earned) in seven innings, with seven strikeouts and three walks. He was fighting himself at times but managed to work efficiently after a 26-pitch first inning.

Dozens of big-league starters would gladly take that, but Eovaldi slump is a subjective term for Eovaldi. However, he allowed seven runs in 4 2/3 innings last week against Toronto. That’s not good for anyone.

The unearned run Tuesday came back to bite the Rangers, who received homers from Nathaniel Lowe and Jonah Heim. Josh Sborz, reinstated from the injured list before the game, retired only one of the three batters he faced in the ninth.

If Eovaldi doesn’t pitch again, he will finish the season with a 3.98 ERA after 28 starts/163 2/3 innings and a 3.80 ERA in 53 starts/307 2/3 innings in two season with the Rangers. The last number is noteworthy as it triggers a $20 million player option that Eovaldi is expected to decline in favor of free agency.

He is the Rangers’ No. 1 offseason priority. The Rangers have starters for 2025, just not enough veteran starters. Eovaldi checks that box while also providing the team with leadership and guidance that young pitchers need.

Eovaldi talked after the game as if he would be back. He doesn’t want to leave and has plenty of reasons to stay.

Regardless of the size of their new TV deal, the Rangers should have the money to sign him. It might take a two- or three-year deal worth $40 million to $60 million, but they can handle that.

Jung done

Officially, Josh Jung has been diagnosed with right wrist tendinitis. Something in the wrist that was fractured April 1 is still barking, and the third baseman wants to get it figured out before spring training.

“I don’t want my career to be defined by getting cortisone shots every six weeks,” Jung told reporters in Oakland.

The Rangers also want answers and for Jung to have a healthy offseason. As a result, he was placed on the 10-day injured list and won’t play again this season. Maybe if the Rangers were still contending for the postseason he’d still be playing, but they’re not and he’s not.

The Rangers made a series of roster moves to get them to the finish line. One of them was putting Ezequiel Duran on the paternity list. In need of an infielder who can play third base, the Rangers purchased the Triple A contract of veteran Matt Duffy.

To get Duffy on the 40-man roster, right-hander Tyler Mahle went to the 60-day IL. To replace Duran, the Rangers recalled outfielder Dustin Harris for what would be his MLB debut.

But, wait, that’s not all … .

Sborz coming off the IL meant that someone was going to lose his roster spot. The short straw was drawn by left-hander Walt Pennington, who has pitched well the past two months and could be on the Opening Day roster in 2025.

Several readers asked on Twitter why the Rangers didn’t promote Blaine Crim, and it’s a fair question. He can’t play third base or shortstop, and the Rangers didn’t want to be caught with him, Justin Foscue or Nathaniel Lowe trying to man the hot corner if something were to happen with Josh Smith or Jonathan Ornelas.

Harris has played third in the past, but, no, the Rangers didn’t want to see that either.

The last hope for Crim fans is that the Rangers will designate Duffy for assignment when Duran returns and use the open 40-man spot to bring up Crim. Those of us who want to see him in the majors are past looking desperate, but that’s OK.

He deserves a look.

Crowd builds

Only two games remain at Oakland Coliseum before the A’s pick up and move to Las Vegas, via a few seasons at a minor-league ballpark in Sacramento. The crowd Tuesday night was large, for Oakland, at 30,402.

The crowd size will likely build tonight, and the series finale Thursday has been sold out for months. It’s going to be a scene, hopefully one that doesn’t involve fans storming the field and disrupting play.

As Rangers broadcaster Dave Raymond said on Tuesday, it’s a shame that relocation was the solution to the impasse between A’s owner John Fisher and the city of Oakland. Raymond is a former Bay Area resident who provided ample details on the franchise’s history and the failed attempts to keep the team in the East Bay.

But the stadium is the fifth-oldest in baseball. Nos. 3 and 4 are also in California (Dodgers and Angels), and public financing for ballparks isn’t a winner there politically.

A lack of revenue isn’t a new issue for the A’s. They have a history of cheap owners in a small market. Their attendance has never been great, except when the A’s have been good, and a shortfall at the gate hasn’t helped with the bottom line.

The bottom line is that there are only two games remaining at Oakland Coliseum.

Doggy video!

A for effort and, frankly, better than I could do. Enjoy.

Am I doing it right..🐕🐾👧😅 pic.twitter.com/rPaeyY3sHA

— 𝕐o̴g̴ (@Yoda4ever) September 24, 2024

Jeff Wilson, jwilson@alldlls.com