Texas’ newly-acquired starting pitcher had a rough go of it in his third outing in Cactus League action.
Texas Rangers pitcher MacKenzie Gore delivers during the third inning of a spring training game against the Chicago White Sox on Friday, Feb. 27, 2026, in Glendale, Ariz.Because it sure beats considering the alternative: That MacKenzie Gore simply wasn’t sharp in his third start of spring.
“How about that?” Gore said half in surprise and half in jest after lasting just 1⅔ innings in a 15-9 win over Kansas City, which wasn’t even the silliest game in the West Valley on a gusty Thursday.In Peoria, Seattle beat San Diego 27-6 and in Goodyear, Cincinnati beat the Dodgers 14-13. Only thing missing across the valley were halftime shows. The Rangers scored four in the top of the first, but Gore allowed seven runs in the bottom of the inning before coming out of the game for a break. He pitched a sharp second, then ran out of pitches in the third.“It was just really a weird game, but I felt good,” Gore said of his third outing of the spring. “I thought the ball came out better than it did last time, and the delivery was a little better, which is what we wanted to do. We just didn’t get people out.”— Really, the biggest concern for Gore was not the balls that were hit, but the balls that were balls. He walked three and hit a batter. They were his first walks of the spring, but he’s alluded to wanting work on two-strike execution and Thursday’s outing wasn’t it. He walked a pair of hitters after getting ahead 1-2.Gore issued 40 walks last year when he had two strikes on a hitter. It was the 13th highest total in the majors.— Sam Haggerty continues to make things happen against left-handed pitching. Facing a pretty good one in former Ranger Cole Ragans, Haggerty fought back from an 0-2 count to start the game with a broken-bat single to left. Haggerty also walked in the third inning against Ragans and has reached in 8 of 12 plate appearances against lefties. Also worth noting: Haggerty has made contact, regardless of which hand the pitcher uses to throw. He’s yet to strike out this spring. — Jake Burger, who homered in the non-official exhibition against Brazil on Wednesday, homered off Ragans in the first. Burger had entered the game 0 for 3 against Ragans in regular-season matchups with strikeouts in all three at-bats.Burger’s homer to right field may have been aided by the steady wind, but, regardless of the result, the process was solid. Burger, a fastball hunter, got a 1-0 97 mph fastball at the top of the zone and made hard contact. The ball left the bat at 104.4 mph. It was the fifth ball he’s hit at least 100 mph this spring in 15 at-bats.Evan has covered the Rangers since 1997. He has twice been named one of the top 10 beat writers in the country by the AP Sports Editors. His passions outside of covering baseball are his wife, Gina, his two step kids, two crazy dogs & barbecue. Let's not discuss the cat. Evan graduated from Georgia State University, but oddly is a Georgia fan.Dallas City Council backs dual track on City Hall, repairs and possible move
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