The Rangers have posted only one winning season in the last nine, but there’s nothing saying everything can’t break right this year.
The Rangers have posted only one winning season in the last nine, but there’s nothing saying they can’t break through this year.Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford laughs in the dugout before a spring training game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Surprise Stadium on Tuesday, Feb.
24, 2026, in Surprise, Ariz.Compiling material for the annual “Things I Wish I Hadn’t Written” column typically reveals a disproportionate share of hopelessly romantic columns about theUnbridled optimism might as well be the way to go now, what with the specter of a lockout next year hanging over the game like Death himself.Look, even if the Rangers have posted only one winning season in the last nine, there’s nothing saying everything can’t break right this year. Pretty muchBesides, these Rangers have legit talent. Not like the spring of 2021, with poor Chris Woodward trying his darndest to talk us into believing Joey Gallo, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Kyle Gibson were the makings of something big.. For that matter, deGrom is in the mix with Nolan Ryan and Fergie Jenkins as the most talented Ranger pitcher ever. Gore’s potential, intermittently tapped, ranks among the game’s elite lefties. Do you know how many times the Rangers kicked off a season with a pitcher who wasn’t as good as any of the above?Texas Rangers pitchers Jack Leiter, Jacob Degrom, Nathan Eovaldi and MacKenzie Gore photographed before a spring training workout at the team's training facility on Tuesday, Feb. 17, 2026, in Surprise, Ariz., although Wyatt Langford did, indeed, earn some MVP buzz from ESPN. Just the same, Seager remains one of the game’s most dangerous hitters. Carter, Burger, Jung, Josh Smith and newcomer Brandon Nimmo all had good springs., a revelation. Sure, it was Arizona, where the air is thin and pitches fat, but at least it was better than last spring. The best news from Surprise, besides the fact that no one else got hurt, was that the Rangers stopped chasing pitches like my grandkids going for the candy bowl. A tip of the cap to Justin Viele, now fully in charge of the hitting department.Question is, how long will they remain committed? Easy enough to be picky at the plate when things are going well. Can they sustain the approach when they’re not hitting? Seems like a defining characteristic of their season, if you ask me.also contributed to the Rangers’ newfound discipline. Pitchers can’t count on those balls just off the plate to be called strikes. Hitters know they can appeal, mitigating a little of the desperation. Speaking of ABS, you’ll like it. Fast, easy, painless. For all you “human element” types, the win here isn’t necessarily in how many calls are reversed. It’s the critical call. Like in the Rangers’ final exhibition game Tuesday, when a Jack Leiter pitch was reversed from a ball to a strike, meaning a walk became a strikeout and a potential unraveling was thus averted. Based on what we knew about missed calls before ABS, expect Langford to be the biggest beneficiary, which is good. Other than Seager, he’s the one capable of rendering the most damage with a second chance.One thing: The Rangers could still improve at taking advantage of the new technology. Baseball Savant had them in the bottom third of MLB this spring in challenges by hitters as well as defenders.. Nothing against Bruce Bochy. Players liked him and still do, as evidenced by the ring of Rangers around him this spring when the club visited Scottsdale. But, all things considered, there’s probably something to be said for a boss who hails from a generation closer to your own. Even if I’m being overly optimistic, I can’t help but tell you that Schumaker will have his work cut out for him this year.. Dynamic rotation, multiple MVP types and baseball’s best farm system. Can’t see the Rangers catching them in the West. But, if the pitching is as good as it was last year, and the hitters are at least league average, the Rangers can make the playoffs. Let them get a foot in the door and see how far they go.More fun thinking about those possibilities than work stoppages or, worse, a start so awful that Chris Young sells off deGrom, Eovaldi, Seager and Lord knows who else. Who wants to think aboutEnjoy baseball while you still can. Enjoy your spring, when life begins anew. I know I will, just as soon as I can see past the pollen.Kevin Sherrington Employed since 1985 by The Dallas Morning News, my fifth and final newspaper. Texas born, raised and steeped. Father of four children, husband of one wife.
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