Former Blue Jays All-Star off to atrocious start

Semien, of course, left for the Texas Rangers that offseason, signing a massive $300MM deal. While he put decent numbers in the first two years of his contract, he hasn't been the same player since. Especially this year.

While his glove has always been stellar - his 19 OAA in 2024 second only to Andres Gimenez among all position players - his bat tells a different story. So far this year he is slashing .188/.273/.250 and a 55 OPS+.

While there is hope that he can replicate his elite defence from a year ago, Semien is also nearly 35. He still has three years and $72MM remaining on his contract, numbers that could start to cause worry in the Lone Star State.

Other issues are his career low BABIP rate and an increase in whiffs and strikeouts, though his 8.1% barrel rate is the highest it's been since his season in Toronto.

His sharp decrease in WAR is also concerning. In 2023, Semien's WAR was 7.7. Last year, it was 4.1. So far this year it is -0.3.

Although the calendar has flipped to May, Semien still has plenty of time to turn his season around and has the track record for the Rangers to keep the faith that he will do so.

If he can get halfway to where he was, he will survive. There are still five months remaining. Time will tell.

SOURCE - MLB Trade Rumours