10 former Yankees players that are about have a chance to get a World Series ring

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While the 2023 Yankees won't be participating in the Fall Classic, and never had a shot to do so, there are plenty of beloved former Yanks who are still alive this October with a chance to capture a title. There are also a few reviled former Yankees who can swipe a ring that'll make you feel weird inside.

Unfortunately, some of these folks are on the same roster, and separating their rings would be impossible. Still, it's a nice thought to have.

The 84-win Diamondbacks and 90-win Texas Rangers are about to match up in the Low Winning Percentage Bowl, but that doesn't make their impending clash any less exciting. The D-Backs are on the come up, led by the likely Rookie of the Year winner, and the Rangers spent like crazy this offseason, effectively patched their holes, and nearly led the AL West wire-to-wire before faltering (and regaining their footing this postseason).

Both teams play a resilient brand of baseball. And one relies on far more former Yankees than the other. Here's the surprisingly large group of ex-Bombers who stand poised to get kinged in a week.

10 Yankees who could earn World Series rings this week

Ex-Yankees Who Probably Won't Be on Roster:

Ezequiel Durán, who somehow played his way off the Rangers postseason roster by the end of the season. He's unlikely to appear -- and never debuted for the Yankees -- but would still get a ring if Texas triumphed (through the efforts of 26 other people).

Ian Kennedy, Texas Rangers. IPK is still kickin' out of the bullpen (and actually returned to the desert with Arizona *last* year). His best season in MLB was 2011 with the Diamondbacks, when he went 21-4 and finished fourth in the Cy Young chase. Now nearly 39, he's on the 60-Day IL after posting a 7.16 ERA in 16 games of relief work this season. Where does the time go? Oh, right. Straight to hell.

Glenn Otto, Texas Rangers. Now a Padre, Otto was sent to Texas in the Joey Gallo trade package as well. 2023's been tough for him; he sustained an oblique injury that landed him on the 60-Day IL, then was DFA'd after returning with a 10.13 ERA. If the Rangers win, though, he (probably) still wins. Unless they really hate him.

The D-Backs:

Joe Mantiply

You think you're the No. 1 Dad? Mantiply! Mantiply! Mantiply!

The somewhat anonymous left-handed reliever made the All-Star team in 2022, and seemed like a possible player the Yankees might reunite with at the 2023 trade deadline -- you know, before the Diamondbacks went off and made the World Series. Before he was a Snake, Mantiply was a Scranton Shuttle Yankee, appearing in one game of the 2019 season.

He provided three innings and three earned runs, never to be seen again. The Anthony Misiewicz of his day.

Mantiply's 2023 season didn't go so well (4.62 ERA/3.85 FIP), and his October followed suit. When Arizona was at their lowest in the NLCS, it was because he was getting rocked by the Phillies to the tune of a 10.13 ERA (but he made a somewhat effective "start" in Game 4!). Either way, he's movin' on.

Miguel Castro

Miguel Castro was a "woulda, coulda, shoulda" for the 2022 Yankees, and was better than most probably remember during his short healthy stint in Pinstripes.

The hard-throwing righty with the bendy slider came over from the Mets on the same day Jose Trevino arrived courtesy of the Rangers, and started the season as the prototypical "sixth inning guy, and we'll see where this goes from here...".

Ultimately felled by injury, Castro struck out 31 in 29 innings, allowing 27 hits and walking 15 men. He registered a memorable escape at Fenway Park, getting Christian Vázquez with the bases loaded. After getting rocked by the Dodgers in a single NLDS appearance (who does that?), he rebounded with 3.1 innings and a single earned run across three games against Philadelphia.

The (Should Be) Forgotten:

Andrew Heaney, Texas Rangers

In a familiar scene for Yankees fans, Heaney almost threw away a World Series berth for Texas all by his lonesome in Game 4 of the ALCS.

Entrusted to keep the Astros at bay with a 2-1 series lead, Heaney instead retired just two batters, allowed four hits, a walk, and three runs, and gave Houston a golden opportunity to rear back, breathe fire, and rejoin the series.

Somehow, some way, the Rangers found two additional wins on the road to send Houston home for the winter and Dusty Baker into retirement, but the embattled Yankees lefty with the high-spin fastball that just ... doesn't work that well nearly wore goat horns in this seven-gamer.

The Rangers' rotation, which was supposed to be fronted by Jacob deGrom, has been decimated to an historic degree. That means Heaney will likely get a World Series start, piggybacked by Dane Dunning, in a development absolutely nobody is excited for.

The Likely Forgotten:

Josh H. Smith, Texas Rangers

While Durán has played his way out of postseason consideration with a second-half slump and Otto is a Pad-o now, Josh Smith has found his way into the Rangers' playoff plans by the skin of his teeth.

He doesn't play much; his 73 OPS+ on the season was rewarded with a single appearance in the ALCS and no at-bats. But Smith is certainly involved, and it would be impossible to argue otherwise.

He was a capable middle infielder through all levels of the minors with the Yankees and made his way to the big-league Rangers quite quickly, covering third, left, short and second after his 2022 debut. Unfortunately, he hasn't found the stick yet at the MLB level, following up his rookie .556 OPS with a .633 mark this season.

Texas has been carrying both a third catcher and Smith throughout the postseason, leaving Durán on the sidelines. It's worth watching whether Bruce Bochy finds an extra reliever somewhere between now and Game 1 and carries Smith as just an observer.

Nathan Eovaldi, Texas Rangers

Nathan Eovaldi circled back to the Yankees this past offseason. He declined a large deal from the Red Sox, then tried to bark up their tree once again after his market cratered a bit. They passed, having already spent money on Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin and Masataka Yoshida.

And so, the Rangers it was for two years and $34 million. At the time, Eovaldi probably thought it would be a neat opportunity to get closer to his Alvin, TX hometown (not Houston close, but still close), all while joining the offseason champions and pitching alongside Jacob deGrom. Little did he know he would become his team's most reliable postseason arm alongside another former Yankee, and would induce one of the most iconic Peter Gammons tweets of all time.

Eovaldi never got to show off his October prowess with the Yankees. He routinely touched 100 with his fastball, but couldn't get it by anyone in pinstripes. His only full year with the team was supremely odd. He helped New York reach the Wild Card Game with 154.1 innings and a 14-3 record, but only struck out 121 men and allowed 175 hits. His 3.42 FIP/4.20 ERA indicated he had room to grow, but it never happened in the Bronx (shocker), as he was sent packing after Tommy John surgery was deemed necessary during a rough 2016.

Since then, he's only become Boston's long relief hero, a hard-earned champion, and the man set to deliver Texas' first title in franchise history. Unless another former Yankee does it instead!

Jordan Montgomery, Texas Rangers

Yup! The ex-Yankee we're happiest for, by a country mile. If only we'd let him use his fastball, a pitch he very much seems to enjoy using.

The Monty Story is well-trod territory, at this point, but it can't be understated just how excellent he was against the Astros -- twice in Houston! -- after the Yankees deemed him an ancillary playoff piece last summer.

Some of that (almost all of that?) was their own incomplete evaluation of Montgomery the pitcher. That said, he was still an under-4.00 ERA guy in the Bronx and came through in his lone playoff start after a tough two-month 2020 season. He was injured in 2018 and not recovered enough to nab a start in 2019. New Monty might be the superior version -- with the same dogged heart as always -- but Old Monty wasn't so bad, either.

Last summer was complex. Harrison Bader was a hero, too, until he wasn't anymore. Pablo López was supposed to fill Montgomery's shoes, but he didn't. Now, the Yankees have a whole winter to consider bringing their sturdy lefty back. Hopefully, he'll have a ring if he returns.

And hopefully, the next guy will lose his in the mail.

Aroldis Chapman, Texas Rangers

The last time there was a non-objectionable AL champion, Aroldis Chapman and the Cubs were on the other side of the equation.

No, seriously. 2017 Astros. 2018 Red Sox. 2019 Astros. 2020 Rays. 2021 Astros. 2022 Astros. It's straight-up gruesome. Not a plucky underdog in the bunch. Just enemy, enemy, enemy.

Chapman's presence, of course, is the only thing holding this Rangers pennant back from being totally joyful. Somehow, he dialed back his meltdowns during the Astros series, though we maintain that if he were still a Yankee, Alex Bregman's long flyout in Game 1 would've found the Crawford Boxes instead.

Some Yankees fans have written in recent days that they miss (?) Chapman (???) for some reason, conveniently forgetting his laundry list of festering warts. He blew the 2019 postseason. He blew the 2020 postseason. He carries a lifetime 4.33 ERA against the Red Sox. He was ill-gotten in the first place, acquired for cheap while the rest of baseball looked around nervously about his forthcoming domestic violence suspension. He quit on the team last summer (infected tattoo) and last fall (literally bolting for Miami when he wasn't guaranteed a playoff roster spot). He can unequivocally go f*** himself, and the best possible outcome for this World Series is a seven-game Rangers triumph where Chapman blows Games 3, 4 and 6, leaving Texas ahead of Game 7 after throwing a personal hissy fit.

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