Aside from Josh Hamilton, there's no debate on who the top free agent name on the market this winter is, and it just so happens he's currently a member of the Rangers' biggest division rival.
The Los Angeles Angels acquired starting pitcher Zack Greinke before July's trade deadline and pitched well for the Angels, who failed to pass the Oakland A's or Texas Rangers, missing the playoffs. But that doesn't mean the Angels don't want Greinke back after he went 15-5 with a 3.48 ERA split between time with the Brewers and Angels. In Anaheim, he went 6-2 with a 3.53 ERA and had 200 strikeouts in 2012 with a K:BB ratio of 4:1.
The potential landing spots for Greinke seem to be the Angels, crosstown rival Los Angeles Dodgers or your very own Texas Rangers.
Greinke would be an instant No. 1 or No. 2 in the Rangers' rotation, right up there with Yu Darvish and more importantly would keep him out of the Angels' hands. With the way the Angels are letting folks go (Torii Hunter, Ervin Santana, Dan Haren), it seems as though they're dead-set on bringing Greinke back. But if the dealings stay in the five-year range, look for the Rangers to make a competitive offer — somewhere in the $110 million range? If the Dodgers or Angels offer a sixth or seventh year, though, you can pretty much write the Rangers off. They wouldn't go more than five years for Cliff Lee back in 2010, so they shouldn't do any differently for an inferior pitcher.
