Six questions facing the Texas Rangers ahead of spring training
The Texas Rangers open training camp this week and play their first spring training game against the Kansas City Royals on Feb. 21.
The team has been busy in the offseason and is looking to return to the playoffs for the first time since winning the World Series.
FanGraphs gives the Rangers the best chance (33%) in the American League West to win the division. Here are six questions facing the franchise as they prepare for spring training.
1. What’s the rotation at catcher?
Jonah Heim is coming off a rough 2024 season, which saw him notch fewer hits, runs, and RBIs and sport a lower batting average than his breakout season in 2023 when he earned an all-star nod and a Golden Glove. Last season Heim had a .220 batting average with 13 home runs and 59 RBIs.
In his past three seasons, Heim has played at least 127 games at catcher but that could change this year with the addition of Kyle Hiagshokioa in free agency.
The veteran catcher was signed to a two-year $13.5 million contract and has played an average of 86 games over the past three seasons. In 2024, Hiagshokioa hit .220 with 17 home runs and 45 RBIs in 84 games played.
This paves the way for the Rangers to have more flexibility at the catcher position than in past seasons if Heim struggles similarly to last season.
2. Who closes games?
Last season the the Rangers’ top three players with the most save opportunities were Kirby Yates, David Robertson and Jose Leclerc. None of the three are currently on the roster, though Robertson is still a free agent.
Yates was a standout for Texas going 33 for 34 on save opportunities and earned an all-star selection last season before signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the offseason.
The Rangers signed several pitchers including Hoby Milner (LHP), Robert Garcia (LHP), Shawn Armstrong (RHP), and Chris Martin (RHP) among others but none of these pitchers have significant experience as a closer.
The Rangers will also be without one of their top relievers, Josh Sborz, for the first two months of the 2025 season while recovering from a right shoulder injury.
The Rangers might have to approach closer by committee at the start of spring training while giving some of their veteran additions or possibly converting starter Jon Gray into the closer role.
3. How will Evan Carter play?
Evan Carter’s Rangers career got off to a spectacular start with the outfielder batting .300 with a home run and six RBIs while playing a major role in helping the franchise win its first World Series in 2023.
Carter struggled in 2024, hitting .188 with five home runs and 15 RBIs in 45 games. He struggled particularly against left-handed batters, against whom he batted .111.
More concerning was Carter missing much of last season because of a back injury that started with stiffness and later diagnosed do be a lumbar strain which required an ablation procedure and sidelined him for the remainder of the season after May 26.
How Carter responds after missing much of last season to injury and if he can improve against left-handed pitchers will be defining for his upcoming campaign.
4. Will key players have a bounce-back season?
If the Rangers want to return to the postseason, they’ll need several key contributors like Adolis Garcia, Dane Dunning, and Josh Jung to return their 2023 forms.
For Jung the most important factor will be his health, the third baseman has been injury-plagued throughout his MLB career, including a broken wrist which derailed a hot start last year and helped limit him to only 46 games played.
Dunning, the 2023 Texas Rangers Pitcher of the Year, had a solid start to last season before tailing off after a right rotator cuff strain early in the season, finishing the year going 5-7 with a 5.31 ERA with 91 strikeouts and 40 walks while being sent down to the minor for the first time in his Rangers tenure.
The Rangers have a deep starting pitching rotation, but Dunning’s versatility out of the bullpen should make him a key pitcher for the year even if he isn’t in the starting rotation.
Garcia hit .224 with 25 home runs with 85 RBIs with his starts decreasing from the year before in hits, runs, home runs, RBIs and batting average, which was his lowest since his 2021 season.
At fan fest, Garcia acknowledged last year’s struggles and said he’s ready to move forward this year and said he’s made some adjustments to his game to help him return to his all-star form.
5. Will Kumar Rocker make the opening-day rotation?
According to MLB Pipeline, Rocker is the second-best Rangers prospect in their farm system, ranked No. 44 overall, after making his big league debut last season against the Seattle Mariners.
Last season in three games Rocker went 0-2 with a 3.82 ERA with 14 strikeouts and six walks. In spring training Rocker will have a chance to crack the rotation with an impressive spring but that appears to be an uphill battle with Jacob deGrom, Tyler Mahle, Nathan Eovaldi, Jon Gray and Cody Bradford all set to return.
6. How will new faces in the lineup acclimate?
The Rangers will have some new faces in their lineup this season headlined by Joc Pederson and Jake Burger two of the Rangers’ biggest offseason additions.
Burger will replace Nathaniel Lowe, who the Rangers traded to the Washington Nationals. In the first four seasons of his MLB career, Burger only played five games at first base, but last year played the majority of his games (69) at first base but did play 59 games at third base.
At the Rangers team dinner, Burger said he ended last season playing a lot of first base for the Miami Marlins and felt comfortable at the position but will be replacing a former Golden Glove and Silver Slugger recipient.
Robbie Grossman and Travis Jankowski played the most games at DH with 26 apiece followed by Wyatt Langford (25) and Adolis Garcia (23). The Rangers will now have Joc Pederson as an option at the DH position, he hit .275 with 23 home runs and 64 RBIs.
With the Rangers last season Grossman and Jankowski combined for four home runs and 22 RBIs in a combined 150 games, with Pederson manning the DH position the Rangers should be able to expect more offensive production out of the position than they had last year.
