Rangers agree to contracts with pitchers Dane Dunning and Josh Sborz, leaving 3 players eligible for arbitration – MLB

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — The Texas Rangers agreed to one-year contracts for right-handed pitchers Dane Dunning and Josh Sborz before Friday night’s tender deadline, leaving them with three players still eligible to salary arbitration.

Dunning got a $2.66 million contract that includes $985,000 in performance bonuses for innings in 2025, down from his $3,325,000 salary this season when he was on the injured list twice due to right shoulder problems. He would earn $50,000 each for reaching 30, 40, 50 and 60 rounds, $75,000 each for 70, 80 and 90 and $80,000 for 100, 105, 110, 120, 130, 140 and 150.

Sborz, who underwent surgery on his right shoulder this month, received $1.1 million with a $250,000 innings bonus after earning $1,025,000 this year. He would earn $25,000 for five rounds, $50,000 for 10, $75,000 for 15 and $100,000 for 20.

Texas has extended 2025 contract offers to all 27 eligible players on its major league roster. That included first baseman Nathaniel Lowe, catcher Jonah Heim and center fielder Leody Taveras, all of whom are eligible for salary arbitration.

After getting the final seven outs of the World Series championship-clinching victory over Arizona in Game 5 of 2023, Sborz missed 107 games this year while going on the injured list four times for problems on the right shoulder.

The Rangers revealed Friday that Sborz underwent a debridement procedure performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache in Los Angeles on November 13. The team said it was reasonable to expect that Sborz could return to action during the first half of the 2025 season.

Sborz has only thrown 16 1/3 innings in 17 appearances this year. He was 2-2 with a 3.86 ERA.

Dunning missed 29 games during his stints on the IL and was demoted to Triple-A Round Rock at one point during the season. With the Rangers, he went 5-7 with a 5.31 ERA in 26 games (15 starts) while splitting time between the rotation and bullpen as he also did during the World Series season.

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