Aug 26, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy (15) takes Texas Rangers relief pitcher Danny Coulombe (54) out of the game during the ninth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Globe Life Field. Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Can Rangers Actually Catch Their Archrival Astros in AL West Race?

Originally posted on Texas Rangers on SI
By Maddy Dickens | Last updated Sep 3, 2025 4:26 PM ET

The Texas Rangers have somehow found their way back into playoff contention despite losing ace Nathan Eovaldi and two All-Starts in the infield -- Corey Seager and Marcus Semien -- in just over a week's time.

The club has found some momentum and players have stepped up all over the place. Even though the team dropped an opportunity on Tuesday night to further climb up the standings, they have to feel pretty good about the way they have been playing.

After dropping a four-game set to the Kansas City Royals from Aug. 18-21 that put themselves back under the .500 mark, the team has been on a tear. Since that point, they have gone 9-2 over their last 11 games, with sweeps over both the Cleveland Guardians and the Athletics.

The Rangers began September with a win and a loss as they look to take the series over the Arizona Diamondbacks before entering a crucial series with the Houston Astros.

Can the Rangers Now Catch the Astros?

If Texas was in any other division, it is fairly unlikely that they could catch a division leader at this point in the season. Luckily, the Rangers are in the AL West and the Astros have not been playing good baseball for the last two months.

Houston has left the door open for Texas to catch them. Entering Wednesday's finale against the Diamondbacks, the Rangers have found themselves 4.5 games back from first place and only 1.5 back from the final wild card spot.

Considering where they were a few weeks ago, Texas has incredibly put themselves into striking distance with a month of games left to play and a looming series against Houston on the horizon.

Overcoming the odds. #AllForTX pic.twitter.com/EWFmBsvdUq
— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) September 2, 2025

The Astros are facing off against the New York Yankees right now. They lost the opener 7-1. If the Yankees continue to play the way they have and take this series, then that opens the door even further for the Rangers in the standings.

What also helps is the fact that Texas will roll into Houston after a day off, something their division rivals don't have the luxury of getting. While the Rangers might prefer to stay on the field since they are playing great baseball right now, breaks at this point of the long season can be crucial.

Depending on what happens between the Astros and Yankees, this weekend could give the Rangers a chance to completely flip this division on its head if they can stay hot and take down their AL West rivals.