Odor’s performance in 2020 hasn’t gone unnoticed, and it’s been enough that the Rangers have shown signs that they’re more interested in seeing what seeing what Andy Ibanez can do; Nick Solak, who frequently manned second while Odor was out with an eye infection, is also a better option at this point. Similarly, Anderson Tejeda has taken most of the shortstop job from long-time incumbent Elvis Andrus.

But for those hoping that a full rebuild will yield quick results, think again. While it’s more than possible that ZiPS is wrong, it can’t be overlooked that entering the season, the system projected the Rangers to end up with the least value from rounds one-to-five of the 2015-19 drafts of any team in baseball, with their picks combining for a total of 16.6 WAR. The player in the system ZiPS liked the most entering the year, Sherten Apostel, still projects as not-quite league-average at his best. Leody Taveras is playing in the majors right now, but the projections only peg him as having a 70-80 wRC+ in his prime. He may play enough defense to be a contributor, but it’s unlikely he — or Tejeda, Josh Jung, or Cole Winn — represent the savior this lineup needs.

Trading players like Gallo and Lynn is unlikely to be popular with the fanbase, but given the team’s setbacks, it’s increasingly difficult to see another way out. Texas didn’t move Lynn or Gallo at the deadline, but that was less the result of an unwillingness to make trades and more because of dissatisfaction with the offers they received:

“We were open to moving the guys we did and we were open to move the guys we didn’t. But we weren’t going to force it. It had to be for an equitable deal. I think some of it is the current climate with teams … it’s really hard to acquire young talent. The market’s really challenging there. There’s not as much of a push to win now. Teams are more willing to hold their prospects and take their chances without going and getting that winning piece.

In the same interview linked above, general manager Jon Daniels expressed that the team will operate at a lower payroll in 2021, an indication that Texas does not see fixing the team’s problems through large sums of money as the solution.

Based on the players under contract, which include all of the prospects named above, ZiPS sees the Rangers as the third-worst team in the American League in 2021 and 2022. Cutting payroll indicates that free agency won’t remedy this situation. And if Gallo and Lynn are traded in the offseason, any players acquired are more likely to be contributors further down the road.

The downside of the teardown mode of rebuilding is a well-known one: you risk alienating your fans long-term, and if the players don’t develop, you may have detonated your core for nothing. The Texas Rangers are demonstrating the downside of the more cautious mode of rebuilding, failing to construct a team that’s not good now or later, and ending up having to start over from scratch. Batten down the hatches Rangers fans, because plotting the course to contention is going to be much harder than initially thought.