Brandon Nimmo, Andrew McCutchen and MacKenzie Gore led an impressive opening-series win in Philadelphia.
Texas Rangers' Andrew McCutchen, center, celebrates his three run home run with Jake Burger Corey Seager in the fourth inning of a baseball game against the Philadelphia Phillies, Sunday, March 29, 2026, in Philadelphia.
. Now consider the first weekend of the season in which the reconstituted roster — read: less expensive — roamed the streets of Philadelphia whipping up on the big-moneyed Phillies. On Sunday,The story of the weekend, though, was how many of the new parts of the roster contributed. From Gore, acquired for five prospects from Washington, to Brandon Nimmo, swapped for Marcus Semien, to Andrew McCutchen, plucked for a bag of beans, there were big contributions across the board from the newcomers. And that’s not even factoring in the relief corps, which apparently came with a free tire gauge, at Discount Bullpens.on a day when the bullpen was short. Meanwhile, the new guys in the bullpen chat, Jakob Junis, Tyler Alexander, Jalen Beeks and Carter Baumler, combined to allow one run in nine innings over the course of the weekend. They cost the Rangers about $7 million total. The lone run came when the Rangers held a six-run lead Sunday.“Well, you can’t argue with the success there,” Corey Seager, who says a lot with very few words, said of the newcomers. “It was a really good series.” Where to start with that? Well, let’s just take it from the top. Nimmo, who reached base six times in 14 plate appearances over the weekend as the new leadoff man, set the tone for an offense that stayed consistent and persistent in approach, even after NL Cy Young runner-up Christopher Sanchez shut the Rangers out on three hits for the first six innings of the season. On opening day, Nimmo walked in the eighth to help show the offense wasn’t simply going to give up on the day. After that walk, the Rangers outscored the NL finalists 16-7. Nimmo’s two-run homer on Sunday got the Rangers’ offense started. McCutchen hit a three-run homer two innings later. Both came off lefty Jesus Luzardo, who finished sixth in the NL Cy Young Award voting last year.It’s notable because left-handed starters particularly vexed the previous version of the Rangers. And good lefties dominated them. A year ago, the Rangers faced 13 lefties who’d finish with a 3.0 WAR or better . The Rangers went 1-12 in those games, never scored as many as five runs against any of them and scored either 1 or zero runs eight times.“It all starts with ,” manager Skip Schumaker said. “He set the tone right out of the gate with the way he prepares and the way he’s taking the lead in the outfield and helping these younger guys get where they want to be. The game planning is elite. He knows exactly what he wants to do at the plate every time. It doesn’t always work out, but he knows what he wants to accomplish and that’s why you see him against some really tough left-handers. These guys he’s faced are tough and for him to do what he’s doing is impressive.” With two outs in the third and Sam Haggerty on via a single, he got a first-pitch cutter that drifted to the inner half of the plate and launched it into the Phillies bullpen. It was his second homer off Luzardo in 22 career at-bats. “It’s always nice when you come into a new team to contribute,” said the aw-shucks Nimmo, who is on a new team for the first time in his career. “But I think the way that you do that is by understanding it’s a long season and you try to do whatever you can in order to help when you come up and in those situations. But you can’t try to do too much. So you just focus on your preparation. You rely on that. And for me, it’s just trying to be myself. And I think is probably the same way.”After Seager walked and Jake Burger singled in the fifth, McCutchen fouled off a 2-2 sweeper at the bottom of the zone, then hooked a cutter on the inner half of the plate just inside the left field foul pole. Came back to the dugout and even gave a Michael Jordan-like shrug to Philly influencer Dave “DaveO” Osokow in the front row. Even mouthed, “I’m sorry,” to him. Then he quoted Demi Lovato. “He was basically saying ‘man, stop hurting us,’ and I said ‘no, dude, I can’t do that’,” is how McCutchen related it. “I’m sorry, but not really sorry.”Two innings later, McCutchen, who posted an Instagram story with himself in a Cowboy hat when he signed with the Rangers, doubled and appeared to lean into the cowboy thing even further, tossing an imaginary lasso. Over the last two days, he singled home the eventual winning run in the 10th inning Saturday and was involved in half of the Rangers’ eight runs Sunday. A nice weekend’s work. Especially for a guy considering retirement a month ago. “We didn’t know what we were going to get out of ,” Schumacher said. “It looked right in spring training, but you just don’t know until you start the season. He’s had some big hits these first few games and today was, what, 97 at the top of the zone. It’s just impressive. What he’s doing right now, it’s just fun to watch.”Gore showed why the Rangers spent five prospects to acquire him with five innings of no-hit ball against the Phillies.All weekend, it seemed García, a key part of Texas’ 2023 World Series team, kept showing up in key moments against his former team.Plus, new additions Andrew McCutchen and Brandon Nimmo are making an early impact on a so-far revitalized offense for the Rangers.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 police identify man who was detained at ‘No Kings’ protest in downtown
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Rangers vs Phillies Prediction, Odds & Home Run Pick for Today's MLB GameSee why our Rangers vs Phillies predictions for Saturday, March 28 are calling for Jacob deGrom to cut through the Philadelphia lineup.
Read more »
Rangers Scratch Ace Jacob deGrom From Start vs. Phillies With Sore NeckThe Texas Rangers scratched Jacob deGrom from his Saturday start against the Philadelphia Phillies because of neck stiffness.
Read more »
Ninth-inning rally not enough as the Phillies fall in extra innings to the RangersAaron Nola struggled in his start, and the Phillies entered the ninth inning with one hit, down 3-0. Despite their late rally, the Phillies were handed a 5-4 loss on a chilly Saturday in Philadelphia.
Read more »
Phillies vs. Rangers photosThe Rangers take down the Phillies 5-4, in extra innings at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday, March 28, 2026.
Read more »
Rangers vs Phillies Prediction, Odds & Home Run Pick for Today's MLB GameOur Rangers vs. Phillies predictions expect Jesus Luzardo & Co. to put the finishing touches on a series win this afternoon.
Read more »
MacKenzie Gore Set for Rangers Debut as Lineup Sees Tweaks Against PhilliesThe Texas Rangers will finish off their series with the Philadelphia Phillies with their newest starting pitcher.
Read more »