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Former Texas Rangers pitcher Jake Diekman has agreed to a one year deal with the Kansas City Royals, per multiple reports, and former Texas Rangers pitcher Doug Fister has announced his retirement today.
Diekman came to Texas as part of the Cole Hamels trade in late 2015, and immediately established himself as a key part of the bullpen, contributing significantly to the 2015 and 2016 division winning teams. Diekman missed most of 2017 after offseason surgery for ulcerative colitis, but came back and pitched well for the Rangers in 2018 before being dealt at the trade deadline for Wei-Chieh Huang and Joshua Javier. Diekman has reportedly agreed to a one year deal with a mutual option with the Royals.
As for Fister, he was the first major league free agent to sign last offseason, with the Rangers signing him to a one year deal with an option. Fister was acceptable when he was on the mound, but he couldn’t stay healthy, and ended up missing the final four months of the season with a bad knee. Fister had a nice run from 2011-14 where he was a legitimate #2 starter before injury issues slowed him down.