In the same story that mentioned the Dodgers’ interest in Torii Hunter, Bob Nightengale of USA Today also noted that the Rangers recently tried to acquire shortstop Andrelton Simmons from the Braves.
Why would the Rangers do this? Well, general manager Jon Daniels isn’t interested in giving up either Elvis Andrus or top prospect Jurickson Profar in a trade for Diamondbacks’ outfielder Justin Upton, so the plan was to flip Simmons to Arizona. Interesting idea, but the Braves didn’t bite.
It’s not clear what the Rangers offered for Simmons, but Mike Olt’s name likely came up in conversations since the Braves could be in the market for a new third baseman following Chipper Jones’ retirement. So far the Diamondbacks have been reluctant to accept Olt as a centerpiece of a deal for Upton, instead preferring either Andrus or Profar. We heard last night that if the Rangers can’t find a match with the Diamondbacks, the Rays may be positioned as to emerge as front-runners.