Texas Rangers A Potential Suitor For James Shields

Oct 26, 2014; San Francisco, CA, USA; Kansas City Royals starting pitcher James Shields throws a pitch against the San Francisco Giants in the first inning during game five of the 2014 World Series at AT&T Park. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The Texas Rangers have emerged as serious potential suitors to sign free agent starting pitcher James Shields.

Now that Jon Lester has finally signed with the Chicago Cubs, the rest of the free agent pitching market is going to begin picking up speed. James Shields is a name that will generate quite a bit of interest over the next week or two, and the Texas Rangers appear to be a legitimate suitor for his services.

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They are looking to upgrade their rotation, and Shields would be exactly what the doctor ordered for them. He would immediately take their rotation a leap forward, and would help them get back into contention.

From TheScore.com:

"James Shields is poised to become one of the most highly sought-after free agents since Jon Lester signed a six-year deal with the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday, and the Texas Rangers have already started courting the 32-year-old right-hander.According to Chris Cotillo of MLB Daily Dish, the Rangers met with Shields during the winter meetings in San Diego and are expected to be “serious contenders” for the former All-Star."

Shields finished last season with a 14-8 record to go along with a 3.21 ERA and 180 strikeouts. He was a big part of the Kansas City Royals’ unexpected World Series run. Whoever ends up signing him is going to be getting a great pitcher and an even better leader.

Texas has a fairly talented roster overall, but they were unable to put everything together this past season. They aren’t too far away from getting back into postseason contention, and adding an ace pitcher like Shields would be a nice step in the right direction. It will be intriguing to see who Shields ends up signing with, as there won’t be any shortage of interest and offers.

All of that being said, the Rangers would make a lot of sense for Shields as well. He would be one of the main reasons for any success that Texas had, and they have an offense that is more than able to give him some support. It will be interesting to see what type of offers he gets, and how much money teams decide to throw his way.

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