A Couple Things That I will Have an Eye On in Spring Training

Spring training is here! Exhibition games are on the horizon and will begin this Friday. The Rangers open their Spring Training exhibition games against the Kansas City Royals, whom they share the facility with. With those games kicking off soon, here are some things I'm going to watch and keep in mind during these games.

The team's overall approach at the plate:

It’s no secret the Rangers’ approach at the plate will change after what we watched last year, especially under a new manager and with a different offensive philosophy. This year, the Rangers are looking to get on base more, make the pitcher work a little harder, and "do what the game asks you to do" as new manager Skip Schumaker reiterates when asked about the offensive approach. The Rangers were in the bottom 5 in the league in OBP. With the additions of Brandon Nimmo and Danny Jansen, who do a good job of getting on base, they are also looking for some bounce back seasons from a number of players like Joc Pederson, Jake Burger, Josh Jung, and a healthy season from Evan Carter. In addition, the Rangers need to be better with runners on base. Too often last year, runners were left stranded after a strikeout or weak pop-up. They need to do a better job moving the runners and cashing in runs.

The Battle for the 5th spot in the rotation:

The first four spots in the Rangers' rotation are basically set in stone with Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi, MacKenzie Gore, and Jack Leiter barring any injuries. On the other hand, the 5th spot in the rotation is up for grabs. The current candidates include Jacob Latz, Kumar Rocker, and Cal Quantrill. Latz proved that he can be a good starter last year when he ended the season in the rotation. In eight starts in 2025, Latz posted a 2.72 ERA over 39.2 innings as a starter. Right now, Latz feels like the frontrunner, and he’d be my pick for the job. Early reports out of Surprise suggest that Kumar Rocker is looking good so far, and he came to camp prepared to compete for the spot. If Kumar has a good spring he could very easily find himself winning the role. The Rangers see Jacob Latz as a valuable reliever who could get some leverage innings for the club if needed. At the moment I would probably say that Cal Quantrill is on the outside looking in, but he could definitely have an impressive spring and land the role.

Who will snag the likely two final bullpen spots:

I think there are a number of guys who could be in the running for the remaining bullpen spots. I assume that Robert Garcia, Chris Martin, Cole Winn, Tyler Alexander, and Jakob Junis are basically guaranteed to get roles. Alexis Díaz will need to prove himself, but assuming he claims one of those spots, that leaves two bullpen jobs truly up for grabs. Guys like Josh Sborz, Ryan Brasier, Luis Curvelo, Robby Ahlstrom, Gavin Collyer, Carter Baumler, Patrick Murphy, Peyton Gray, and Michel Otañez. I think Robby Ahlstrom has a good chance to make the bullpen because last spring he caught the eyes of coaches and team personnel. Gavin Collyer has already caught some eyes early this spring, and has even gotten some praises from Skip Schumaker. Michel Otañez has electric stuff, but has trouble finding the strike zone. Ryan Brasier is a good veteran arm, but hasn't been able to stay healthy the past two years. This could be a very fun race to watch this spring, and definitely something I'm going to watch while in Arizona in early March.

The Battle for second base:

Replacing an ironman and defensive wizard like Marcus Semien won’t be easy. With the Rangers moving on from Marcus, they are looking to improve offensively at the position. They chose to fill the role internally with several versatile options. The leading candidate is utility man Josh Smith, with Cody Freeman, Michael Helman, and Ezequiel Duran also in the mix. Smith enters camp as the frontrunner, but Cody Freeman has a shot at it. Cody is well-liked throughout the organization because he plays the game hard and he is a great teammate. Although his 2025 numbers aren’t eye-popping, they don’t fully reflect his impact. Cody Freeman has the chance to prove this spring that he can perform at the big league level. Josh Smith also needs to maintain production throughout the whole season. Over the last two years, he’s produced in the first half before fading down the stretch. Maybe staying at one position can help with the wear-and-tear at the end of the season we’ve seen the last two years.