Top Texas Rangers Spring Training Storylines

Schumaker is the kind of guy who is young enough to get through to the younger players, and yet was gritty enough and has enough skins on the wall to have the respect of the veteran guys.

How will he handle adversity or a struggling player? How will he manage the pitching staff as a whole? And, with the lack of a true closer heading into the season, how will Schumaker navigate the later innings?

Questions are always present when there are unknowns. That is one of the main reasons that we all love sports, and specifically baseball, so much. Literally anything can happen on any given day.

But with Schumaker, the questions are exciting and not worrisome. He is ready and capable of getting the team back to the postseason. How he does it will be a picture that will unfold over the summer.

Brandon Nimmo Era

As if dropping his bat after a walk and sprinting to first base, Brandon Nimmo has come into Texas and been a breath of fresh air. The Nimmo-for-Marcus Semien trade was one of the biggest MLB transactions of the entire offseason.

Nimmo has come in and immediately filled two holes. One is on the defensive side in right field. With Adolis Garcia no longer manning the outfield for the Rangers, Nimmo has seamlessly shifted over from his historic left field spot to right.

The other role that Nimmo has embraced is that of leadoff man. Semien had been the main leadoff hitter for the Rangers since his arrival in 2022 until last season’s hitting woes got to the point that Bochy started moving him around the order.

Hitting leadoff isn’t for everyone, but with Nimmo in the spot consistently, there should be a stabilizing factor at the top of the lineup. Setting the stage for the likes of Wyatt Langford and Corey Seager is a great spot for Nimmo.

In the clubhouse, Nimmo is already having a big impact on the Rangers. After his first walk of the spring, Seager dropped his bat and sprinted to first base. A tip of the hat to Nimmo. A “glad that you are here,” if you will. A lighter Seager is going to be great for the Rangers and spell trouble for opposing teams.

Chemistry with a baseball team is important, and having Nimmo on the team is nothing but positive.

Battle for the Final Rotation Spot

The Rangers find themselves with a great problem. They are still trying to decide who will start the season in the fifth spot in the rotation. Shouldn’t that already be clear, you might ask?

Well, it would be most of the time. But the Rangers have the luxury of having two quality arms that are doing the battling. Kumar Rocker and Jacob Latz are both capable of being solid big-league starters.

In fact, both of them would easily make the Opening Day rotations of most MLB organizations. With the offseason trade for young southpaw MacKenzie Gore, the top four spots have been set for a while. Nathan Eovaldi, Jacob deGrom, Gore, and Jack Leiter are as top shelf of a four-man rotation that you can find.

So, back to the question of who will join them. Early in the spring, it appeared that Latz had taken the lead in the race. But some velo and control issues as his starts have gone deeper have perhaps opened the door for Rocker to slide in.

Latz still appears to be the frontrunner. He was outstanding in multiple roles for the Rangers last season. In 85.2 innings pitched, he posted a 2.84 ERA. From starting to long and mid relief, and even some high-leverage work late in games, Latz was the Swiss Army Knife of the pitching staff.

While Latz probably deserves the title of fifth starter to start the season, there is likely to be plenty of pitching for everyone as the season progresses. Stay tuned.

Bounce-Back Boys

There might not be any group of players that are ready for a new season to begin more than Joc Pederson, Josh Jung, and Jake Burger. The three power hitters were supposed to bring lots of pop to the Rangers’ lineup in 2025. Instead, it was an injury-riddled struggle at the plate for the three mashers.

In 96 games, Pederson slashed .181/.285/.328, hit nine home runs, scored 28 runs, had 26 RBI, and had a wRC+ of 76. That dismal wRC+ number was exactly half of what he hit for in 2024 for Arizona, when he had a 152 wRC+.

Jung did manage to bob and weave enough to miss any major injuries last season. The third baseman played in a career high 131 games, hit .251/.294/.390, slugged 14 home runs, scored 53 runs, drove in 61, finishing the season with a wRC+ of 91.

There is probably no player on the Rangers roster who is more excited about Schumaker being at the helm than Burger. He played for the skipper in Miami and had great success under him. In fact, Schumacher’s influence as a special assistant was one reason the Rangers went and got Burger before last season.

Burger did struggle last year as well. Injuries kept him on the sidelines a lot, and the inconsistent playing time led to inconsistent numbers. In 103 games, Burger hit .236/.269/.419, hit 16 home runs, scored 43 runs, had 53 RBI, and ended up with an 89 wRC+.

It is well documented that the Rangers’ offense has struggled the last few years. The 2025 struggles were in large part due to the poor performances of these three guys. There were others that struggled too, but they are no longer with the club.

The Rangers feel like a big part of the offensive resurgence is going to come from this trio. Burger is having a fantastic spring, where he has hit three home runs and has an OPS of .922 through Monday’s game. That will play!

Pederson, on the other hand, is still not hitting. He has a .172 average and .486 OPS with zero home runs in Cactus League play. The Rangers continue to believe that Pederson can turn things around. But the leash is getting shorter and shorter every day.

Jung came into camp looking great. But an early leg injury has kept him out of most of the action. He is back now and ripped a triple in his first at-bat since returning.

The Rangers’ offensive success or failure will hinge greatly on these three bounce-back guys. Texas will need at least two of the three to step up their game and regress back to the mean.

Coming up Cutch

In what first looked like a straight flyer move by the Rangers, they went out and signed Andrew McCutchen to a minor-league deal a few weeks ago.

Needing to make a quick impression, McCutchen has been nothing short of outstanding in his brief time with the Rangers. The former NL MVP is currently putting up video game numbers.

In 17 plate appearances, the 39-year-old veteran has seven hits (three of which are doubles) and has drawn five walks. His hit line is .583/.706/.833.

Obviously, these numbers aren’t sustainable. But for a guy who just joined the club and had to make a major splash, he is doing just that. Any doubts as to whether McCutchen can still hit should be laid to rest.

It was speculated that the Rangers might try to persuade McCutchen into going to Triple-A Round Rock to start the year and get a few more at-bats. That is likely not going to happen at this point. He has cemented his place on the Opening Day roster for the Rangers with the way he is swinging it.

McCutchen brings a positive attitude and a bat with him that can still rake. Yes, he will be a great clubhouse guy, but he is likely to play a major part on this team in 2026. Nobody saw this coming, but this could be one of the most enjoyable Ranger stories of the year.