Well, ladies and gentlemen, we begin the first leg of the 2021 offseason.

On Friday, the Rangers made a slew of procedural moves to make room for guys on the sixty-day injured list. First, Texas activated the seven players on the sixty-day list, including Kyle Cody, Edwar Colina, Jonathan Hernandez, Jose Leclerc, Nick Snyder, John King, and Eli White. Then, to make room, the club placed a slew of players on waivers. Four players cleared waivers, including Matt Bush, Anderson Tejeda, Curtis Terry, and Ronald Guzmán, then were sent outright to AAA Round Rock. Meanwhile, the Minnesota Twins claimed Jharel Cotton, and the San Francisco Giants claimed Joe Palumbo. As a result, the Rangers’ current roster sits at thirty-six, and the Rangers can sign or add four more players without making any moves.

There were a few shockers to the guys placed on waivers. Joe Palumbo was a pitcher I thought that would create at least some noise for a trade. However, the Rangers probably thought his inconsistent playing time wouldn’t produce much of a return to make other teams bite. However, if Palumbo stays healthy with good command of his pitches, the Giants found a gem of a reliever. I also thought teams might bite on Anderson Tejeda. Sure, his big league numbers haven’t been good in a small sample size, but a kid with big-league experience the past two seasons may produce a claim, but the Rangers get to keep Tejeda.

Joe Palumbo is in Giant orange. https://t.co/W8PF8pIwUk

— Alex Plinck🏳️‍🌈 (@aplinckTX) November 5, 2021

I’m interested to see the decision made for Ronald Guzmán. Because Guzmán (and the other three players) were sent outright to Round Rock, they either have to accept the assignment or go to free agency. In late September, Guzy talked about wanting to come back to prove himself for 2022. While the club did retain Guzmán as he cleared waivers, he may try his luck in free agency with Nathaniel Lowe holding down the fort at first base. The questions from management came if he could get healthy, but with the direction the team is going, it may be a small shot for Guzmán to get consideration for even an opening day shot.

As for the other three, I would assume Matt Bush will stay with the Rangers and go to Round Rock. As for Curtis Terry and Anderson Tejeda, I can see them flip-flop from one side to the other. Both got small shots in the big leagues, but both struggled to get any traction. There would be no shock if both decided to take their chances in free agency and see if another club would take a chance.

With free agency brewing, there could be some intriguing rumors spreading around Major League Baseball. The free-agent class is no joke, and the Rangers are essentially moving to phase two in the rebuild. Winter is approaching, and I assume the Rangers will do more November/December cleaning to make room for the youth boys of the future. It’s like the front office is singing that Spring Cleaning song from Rocko’s Modern Life.