MLB Rumors: Nathan Eovaldi Agrees to 2-Year, $34M Contract with Rangers

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Free agent starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi and the Texas Rangers have agreed to a contract, per Robert Murray of FanSided.

Mark Feinsand of MLB.com confirmed the news and reported that the deal is pending a physical.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported the two-year deal would be worth $34 million and has a vesting player option for a third season.

Eovaldi, who turns 33 years old on Feb. 13, went 6-3 with a 3.87 ERA and 1.24 WHIP in 20 starts for the Boston Red Sox last season. He had 103 strikeouts in 109.1 innings.

Eovaldi is perhaps best known for his tremendous playoff performance for the World Series-winning 2018 Red Sox. In 22.1 innings, he posted a 1.61 ERA, including a pair of wins as a starter in Game 3 of both the American League Division and Championship Series.

He also threw six innings in relief during Game 3 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, keeping the Red Sox alive in an 18-inning marathon.

Ultimately, the Dodgers’ Max Muncy hit a solo home run off Eovaldi to win the game, but the right-hander was still excellent with just two runs (only one earned) allowed alongside five strikeouts.

Eovaldi entered the major leagues in 2011 with the Dodgers and played for the Miami Marlins, New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays before joining the Red Sox via trade in 2018.

In 2021, Eovaldi finished fourth in the American League Cy Young race after going 11-9 with 195 strikeouts and a 1.19 WHIP in 182.1 frames.

Now he’ll join Texas, which has a deep rotation on paper after adding Eovaldi and two-time National League Cy Young winner Jacob deGrom to front a group that already includes Martin Perez and Jon Gray.