Texas GM Jon Daniels said on Sunday that while he has no “desire” to move shortstop Elvis Andrus this offseason, he is at least willing to listen.
And with the Yankees searching for Derek Jeter’s replacement in a thin free-agent market at the position, the possible availability of the 26-year-old figures to lead to conversations between the two sides.
“Bottom line, we have to be open to at least considering anything,” Daniels said on SiriusXM MLB Network Radio. “That’s not to say we are or are not going to focus on any one player, but … you’ve got to be open to it.”
As The Post’s Joel Sherman reported last week, the Yankees are “intrigued” about Andrus, who is coming off a subpar season, two years after signing an eight-year, $120 million contract extension with Texas.
Still, some within the organization are hesitant to take on yet another huge contract, especially after last year’s spending spree that didn’t result in a playoff appearance.
But the Rangers have plenty of holes to fill and great depth in the middle infield, with inexpensive players like Rougned Odor, Jurickson Profar and Luis Sardinas all at or close to major-league ready. So trading Andrus could be one way the Rangers, coming off a down season of their own, could look to save money.
Daniels made it clear, though, he isn’t simply trying to unload the two-time All-Star.
“I don’t have any desire to move him,” Daniels said. “It’s easy to forget how young he is. I still think he’s one of the best shortstops in the game, especially with the lack of power and how offensive numbers are coming back to the pack [around baseball].”
Andrus has played at least 145 games in all six of his seasons in the majors, but is coming off a down year during which his OPS slipped for a second straight time, to .647 in 2014.
The Yankees could choose to look for a stopgap to take over for Jeter and bring back Stephen Drew, who had a disastrous experience after turning down a qualifying offer from Boston, missing spring training and then being completely unproductive with the Red Sox and Yankees.
Among other free-agent possibilities are Hanley Ramirez, Asdrubal Cabrera and Jed Lowrie.