Colorado Rockies unsurprisingly lose starting pitcher Jon Gray to Texas Rangers

In a move that should not be surprising to Colorado Rockies fans, the Colorado Rockies will not be re-signing free agent starting pitcher Jon Gray. Instead, he will be signing with the Texas Rangers. Gray, 30, will reportedly get a four-year deal for $56 million from the Rangers, per ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

It is the third MLB free agent signing of the day for the Rangers as they reportedly agreed to terms with free agent infielder Marcus Semien and outfielder Kole Calhoun earlier in the day.

The Colorado Rockies losing out on Jon Gray to the Texas Rangers is not surprising.

Jon Gray is a native of Oklahoma so with going to the Texas Rangers, he will be closer to home, but the Colorado Rockies could have had Jon Gray if they truly wanted him. Gray has long expressed that he would like to re-sign with the Rockies. After all, he was comfortable with the team and he pitched well with the Rockies, particularly at Coors Field.

However, the Rockies mishandled Gray every step of the way including not even considering trading him at the trade deadline, offering him an extension for the first time during the final homestand of the year and not earlier, having that extension be a lowball extension, and not give a qualifying offer to him.

Now, the Rockies, unsurprisingly, have lost out on him. Some have said that the Rockies did not offer the qualifying offer to him because the Rockies were afraid that he would accept it. If that’s the case, the Rockies didn’t really want Gray back.

Instead of the qualifying offer (one-year deal for $18.4 million), the Rockies have nothing to show for losing Jon Gray when they had no chance of making the playoffs in July, when the trade deadline was … and Gray gets a four-year deal worth $56 million, which is higher than the Rockies offered him in length and average annual value.

Colorado Rockies fans are going to be hoping that the team does something before the CBA expires on Wednesday but unlike other teams, the Rockies are seemingly dormant right now during the raging inferno that is the current Hot Stove season.