Dane Dunning’s Rollercoaster 2025: From Rotation Depth to Roster Casualty

Dane Dunning’s 2025 season with the Texas Rangers wasn’t defined by highlight-reel moments or breakout performances-it was more of a behind-the-scenes procedural drama that played out across waiver wires, minor league bus rides, and a few brief stints on a big-league mound. For a pitcher who once earned the title of Rangers’ Pitcher of the Year, it was a humbling ride through the margins of a contending roster.

Let’s rewind to the offseason heading into 2025. Coming off an injury-plagued and underwhelming 2024, Dunning was arbitration-eligible and projected to earn a raise-to the tune of $4.4 million.

But the Rangers didn’t see the value matching even his previous $3.325 million salary. Instead, they offered him a one-year deal at $2.66 million-the maximum 20% pay cut allowed under the CBA.

Dunning took the deal, likely recognizing that the open market might not be any kinder. The contract included nearly $1 million in performance bonuses, but as things turned out, those incentives never came into play.

Spring training didn’t help his case. After a lackluster showing, the Rangers placed him on outright waivers at the end of camp. Whether they were hoping another team would take on his salary or simply wanted to stash him in Triple-A as depth, Dunning went unclaimed and opened the season with Round Rock.

His early outings there? Rocky.

He got knocked around in back-to-back starts before settling in with a trio of solid performances. That was enough to earn him a call-up in late April when the Rangers needed a fresh arm.

He made one appearance-three innings of mop-up duty behind Jacob deGrom in a blowout win over the A’s-and was designated for assignment the very next day. The team needed a catcher and had to clear a 40-man roster spot to bring up Tucker Barnhart.

Dunning was the odd man out.

He cleared waivers again and returned to Round Rock, struggled in his first few outings, then found a groove again. That pattern-struggle, adjust, rebound-became the theme of his year.

He got another brief call-up in late June, pitched in one game, then was optioned back down. Ten days later, he was back again, logging innings in three blowout wins before being sent down once more.

By July, it was clear the Rangers were ready to move on. Whether it was about clearing salary ahead of the trade deadline or simply turning the page, they dealt Dunning to Atlanta in exchange for reliever José Ruiz and cash considerations. Ruiz had been outrighted earlier that season and was struggling in Triple-A, so this was more of a salary swap than a baseball upgrade.

Dunning’s final line with the Rangers in 2025: 5 games, 10.2 innings, 10 strikeouts, 5 walks, and a 3.38 ERA. Solid numbers in a vacuum, but not enough to keep him tethered to a roster spot on a team with playoff aspirations.

In Atlanta, the story didn’t get any brighter. He bounced between the majors and minors, allowing 13 runs in 10 big-league innings before being waived at season’s end. He became a free agent and recently signed a minor league deal with the Seattle Mariners, hoping to reboot his career in a new organization.

It’s a tough ending for a pitcher who was once a key part of Texas’ rebuild. Dunning arrived in the 2020-21 offseason in the Lance Lynn trade, a deal that also brought Avery Weems to the Rangers.

He gave the team two serviceable years in the rotation during the lean years and then stepped up in 2023, splitting time between starting and relieving, and pitching in five postseason games. That year, he earned the team’s Pitcher of the Year honors.

Dunning’s 2025 won’t be remembered for stats or milestones-but for the grind. The waiver claims, the back-and-forth bus rides, the quiet innings in blowout games. It was a year that reminded us just how thin the line can be between being a key contributor and a roster casualty.

Now, he’ll look to write a new chapter in Seattle. And while the odds may be long, Dunning’s shown he’s willing to battle through the margins. Sometimes, that’s where the best comebacks begin.