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As spring training comes to an end, teams often have a better sense of who is and isn't expendable to them. Some teams realize they still need one more piece, or they might even have to replace someone who went down with an injury. This is the time when teams start making deals and the Rangers could be one of them.
The Rangers have just learned that they will be without their starting catcher for most of the first half after Geovany Soto underwent knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus. That would leave them with J.P. Arencibia and Robinson Chirinos as their only options on the 40-man roster. It makes sense that they'll be looking around for someone, anyone, better.
Buster Olney reports that the Rangers have been checking in on teams with surplus catching and they have spoken to the Yankees about Francisco Cervelli. New York probably has a greater abundance of catchers than any other team in the majors and they have very little room to store them all. John Ryan Murphy and Austin Romine are both expected to start the season in the minors, while Cervelli is going to be the backup to Brian McCann. Murphy might have the most value as a 22-year-old catcher with many years of team control remaining, but teams looking for a small boost from a more known quantity might look to Cervelli because he would cost much less in return.
Unfortunately, it's not expected that the two teams will be a match since the Yankees only really need infielders and the Rangers aren't about to part with anyone they have for a 27-year-old, out-of-options backup catcher. Texas also has their own infield issues now that Jurickson Profar has been diagnosed with a torn shoulder muscle and will be out for the first few months of the season, and Elvis Andrus is dealing with elbow issues. Soto going down seemed like the perfect time for the Yankees to strike, but it doesn't sound like that's in the cards.
Instead, it looks like the Rangers have picked up Chris Snyder, who was just released by the Nationals yesterday.