The Rangers non-tendered catcher Jonah Heim last week, but not because they had a younger option to whom they plan to hand the reins. Veteran Kyle Higashioka is signed through 2026, but president of baseball operations Chris Young said this week that he still plans to explore the trade and free agent markets to bring in some additional help behind the dish, Shawn McFarland of the Dallas Morning News writes.
It’s not clear how heavy a workload Higashioka will shoulder in 2026, but he’ll turn 36 in April and logged career-high marks in games played (94) and plate appearances (327) last year. The longtime Yankee backstop slashed .241/.291/.403 with 11 home runs in that time. Defensive Runs Saved credited him as an above-average catcher, while Statcast had his glovework closer to average.
Presumably, whoever is brought into the fold would be expected to play in at least a 50-50 split, as it seems unlikely that Higashioka would be in line for a major boost in playing time at age 36. Whether it was due to the workload or was simply a matter of happenstance, Higashioka hit just .174/.255/.283 with an uncharacteristically high 29.4% strikeout rate from Sept. 1 onward.
Unfortunately for Young and the Rangers, it’s not a great time to be in the market for catching help. The free agent class is headlined by J.T. Realmuto, though the incumbent Phillies will make a strong push to retain him. (The Red Sox are also among the interested parties.) Victor Caratini presents a credible starter or half of a 50-50 timeshare. Beyond that, the open market is comprised primarily of rebound candidates — Danny Jansen, Gary Sanchez and old friend Mitch Garver among them.
The trade market doesn’t offer many clearly available alternatives. If the Twins continue their teardown, then Ryan Jeffers would surely be available ahead of his final season of club control. The Cardinals have received trade interest in their stable of catchers (Ivan Herrera, Jimmy Crooks, Pedro Pages) and recently bolstered their depth by re-signing Yohel Pozo, but there’s no urgency for them to move anyone from that bunch. It’s a similar story in Kansas City, where the Royals have Carter Jensen and Blake Mitchell behind team captain Salvador Perez. Both Jensen and Mitchell were popular asks at the trade deadline. (Perez, who recently signed an extension and has full no-trade rights, isn’t going anywhere.) The White Sox have gotten trade interest in both Edgar Quero and Kyle Teel, but there’s no rush to move either.
The Rangers, after trading Marcus Semien to the Mets in exchange for outfielder Brandon Nimmo over the weekend, project for about $169MM in 2026 payroll, per RosterResource. That’s miles below the $225MM figure the team fielded late in 2025. Nimmo said after the trade that Young made clear to him the club isn’t entering any kind of rebuild and still plans to contend for the playoffs in 2026, so even though the plan is to scale back payroll, Young & Co. should have space for subsequent additions.
