SAN DIEGO — The AL West-leading Texas Rangers continued to load up on pitching Sunday by acquiring left-hander Jordan Montgomery and reliever Chris Stratton from the St. Louis Cardinals.
The deal came a few hours after Texas announced the addition of three-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer from the New York Mets. Also on Sunday, the Rangers placed ace Nathan Eovaldi on the 15-day injured list with a right forearm strain, retroactive to July 27.
Texas sent left-hander John King, minor league infielder Tommy Saggese and Double-A right-hander T.K. Roby to the Cardinals. To make room on the 40-man roster, the Rangers designated right-hander Joe Barlow for assignment.
“I’ve heard nothing but great things about the guys in Texas,” Montgomery said, before referring to popular Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux. “Having Mad Dog there will be great.
“I was kind of prepared for it. Just excited to join the new team. It’s been fun being here. Stratton is one of my best friends here – it’s great having that.”
Montgomery is 6-9 with a 3.42 ERA in 21 starts for last-place St. Louis, with 108 strikeouts against 35 walks. He can become a free agent after this season.
Stratton is 1-1 with a 4.36 ERA and one save in 42 relief appearances, with 59 strikeouts and 17 walks.
“I look forward to seeing these guys. They’re going to help us and make us a better ballclub,” Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said after the San Diego Padres clinched a three-game sweep with a 5-3 win over Texas.
The Cardinals are last in the NL Central, 13 games under .500.
“This is a day that we were hoping would never happen in a sense of having to break up our club, having to focus on the future,” general manager John Mozeliak said. “But over the course of the last two weeks, we were really taking a hard look at what the trading deadline can do for us.”
St. Louis also sent hard-throwing reliever Jordan Hicks to the Toronto Blue Jays for minor league right-handers Adam Kloffenstein and Sem Robberse.
“I feel pretty good about what we acquired,” Mozeliak added. “This group has some upside. These guys are going to come out and compete right away. They’re people that are going to be pitching at our upper levels. This year has not gone as we planned. We want to focus on 2024 and beyond.”
To get Scherzer, the Rangers sent highly-rated infield prospect Luisangel Acuña to the Mets. He is the younger brother of Atlanta star Ronald Acuña Jr.
Scherzer waived his no-trade clause to complete the deal, and the Mets will send cash to Texas. The pitcher also agreed to opt in on the final year of his contract in 2024 at $43.3 million, according to reports that said the Mets were paying about $35 million of the remaining $58 million on the right-hander’s contract.
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