Corey Seager’s Defense Becoming Key for Rangers’ Success

The Texas Rangers have been on a bit of a downturn recently, but star shortstop Corey Seager has been able to put together an extremely strong defensive season.

Aug 11, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers shortstop Corey Seager (5) bats during the game between the Texas Rangers and the Arizona Diamondbacks at Globe Life Field. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Texas Rangers have had a rather intriguing 2025 campaign in pretty much every sense of the word. With a few strong bursts of momentum followed by a few poor stretches of baseball, they have found themselves right around .500, sitting in third place in the American League West with a 62-63 record.

One of the core elements of their success previously has been their star shortstop, Corey Seager, who, despite a somewhat less efficient role at the plate, has stepped up his game in the field. While he has been walking quite a bit more than previous years, he has also been making less contact, with a lowered .258 batting average compared to .278 in 2024 and .327 in 2023. As for his on-base percentage ,though, it has risen to .361 from .350 last season.

As for his fielding, it has been rather impressive in 2025, especially when factoring in certain portions of the infield where he tends to succeed, as he has shown immense success at specific locations along the basepath. While he has not been among the top of the league in terms of his arm strength, he is making do with technical prowess and quality reads.

How Has Seager Produced Statistically on Defense in 2025?

Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Over the course of the year, Seager has put together an extremely strong defensive showing, which is something that fans have come to expect of the veteran. According to Baseball Savant, he has had less than optimal arm strength, rated at the 24th percentile. However, he has produced four outs above average, which is good for the 89th percentile.

Corey Seager has rated among the best defensive shortstops in baseball. His defense remains underrated, publicly.

He made two outstanding plays tonight but starting this double play in the 9th? Wow pic.twitter.com/ypr3dW00ef

— Jared Sandler (@JaredSandler) August 6, 2025

When looking further into where he has succeeded most vs. where he has struggled in the field, it becomes clearer why he has been producing overall. The highest success rate for his defense comes when he stays in a true shortstop position, splitting the third and second basemen, as he has had success on 88% of his plays there, producing four of his outs above average.

He has had more trouble when ranging towards the second base spot and having to make plays not only with his arm but with his legs. When playing up the middle, he has a 75% success rate and an estimated success rate of 73% on average. Most of his negative plays, which are few and far between, come closer to second base than anything.

Overall, his defense has remained at a well-above-average level in 2025, and hopefully, as he continues to come around on offense, he can lead the team heading into the later portion of the season.