Biggest Offseason Regret for Rangers Hurting Ballclub Early Into ’26

The Texas Rangers are on the brink of being a very competitive team this season, but one part of the roster is drastically holding them back.

Texas Rangers pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (left) has his glove checked by umpire Scott Barry at the end of the second inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. | Mitch Stringer-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers just barely missed the postseason in 2025, failing to capitalize in the final weeks of the year, leaving them looking on from the outside during the playoffs. They had plenty of time to address the ballclub's biggest holes in the roster.

Management for the Rangers made one prime addition to the starting rotation: MacKenzie Gore. Gore is on track for the best season in his short career, but without him, the rotation is lagging, to say the least.

This offseason, the Rangers could have made a huge move with another starting pitcher because even after adding Gore, this team needed another pitcher. This will turn out to be the organization’s biggest regret from the offseason.

Adding Gore was a huge positive move for the roster, but it wasn't enough to make the rotation compete with some of the top teams in baseball. Even if this ballclub makes it to October without another arm, the team will not make a respectable run to keep its season alive.

A Look at Rangers Current Starting Rotation

Texas Rangers pitcher MacKenzie Gore (1) throws to the plate during the third inning against the Seattle Mariners at Globe Life Field. | Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images

Nathan Eovaldi is easily the most surprising regarding a starting pitcher who has had a massive dropoff since last year. Eovaldi was deep into '25 and looking like a Cy Young candidate. It is the exact opposite for '26.

• Nathan Eovaldi (3 starts): 7.98 ERA, 22 Hits, 13 Earned Runs, 4 Home Runs, 5 Walks Allowed, 19 Strikeouts, 1.84 WHIP, .338 Opponent's Batting Average
• MacKenzie Gore (3 starts): 2.76 ERA, 9 Hits, 5 Earned Runs, 2 Home Runs, 5 Walks Allowed, 25 Strikeouts, 0.86 WHIP, .158 Opponent's Batting Average
• Jack Leiter (3 starts): 4.91ERA, 14 Hits, 8 Earned Runs, 3 Home Runs, 6 Walks Allowed, 21 Strikeouts, 1.36 WHIP, .246 Opponent's Batting Average
• Kumar Rocker (2 starts): 4.50 ERA, 11 Hits, 5 Earned Runs, 2 Home Runs, 3 Walks Allowed, 8 Strikeouts, 1.40 WHIP, .275 Opponent's Batting Average
• Jacob deGrom (2 starts) 3.72 ERA, 7 Hits, 4 Earned Runs, 2 Home Runs, 1 Walk Allowed, 13 Strikeouts, 0.83 WHIP, .194 Opponent's Batting Average

Gore is definitely the highlight of this rotation right now, but deGrom is establishing himself as the No. 2 pitcher. It is early in the season, obviously, but seeing so many arms allowing so many earns is not ideal.

deGrom is also holding opponents to a sub-.200 batting average, exactly what the Rangers need, but the organization is definitely going to need more than that, and now they are going to look for a pitcher through a trade, rather than a free agent.

Texas is on a rough stretch on the road right now before returning home to Dallas in a week. Baseball is the longest season in professional sports, so there is still time, but the Rangers do not want to find themselves in a hole they can't dig out of.