Jake Burger Returns to Rangers After Offseason of Surgery and Pilates

The Texas Rangers first baseman is back in spring training hoping to stay healthy and better his numbers from a season ago.

Texas Rangers pinch hitter Jake Burger. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

In many ways, 2025 was a somewhat lost season for Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger.

The Rangers acquired him in a trade with the Miami Marlins in late 2024 as they attempted to get younger at the first base position, flipping Silver Slugger winner Nathaniel Lowe to the Washington Nationals in a trade for pitcher Robert Garcia. But Burger was never able to get into a rhythm all season.

By the end of the first month, Texas optioned him to Triple-A Round Rock to give him time to work on his swing, which came out of the gate struggling. By season’s end, Burger slashed .236/.269/.419 with a .687 OPS, including 16 home runs and 53 RBI. But he only played 97 games as he went on the injured list three different times.

The wrist sprain he suffered in August never healed 100% and he underwent surgery this offseason. He is good to go for spring training and reported to Surprise, Ariz., a day early as the first workouts for positions players are on Sunday.

Jake Burger’s Offseason

Texas Rangers first baseman Jake Burger. | Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images

Burger spent the offseason recovering from the surgery but also looking for ways to get an advantage for himself over a season ago. Being healthy is the biggest key, he said. In order to do so he adopted a new routine as he did Pilates three times a week.

“It’s really hard to kind of get going when you go back on the IL, get going again and then you go back on the IL,” Burger said to reporters on Saturday.  “So, for me there's addressing that from the soft tissue standpoint.”

Another point of emphasis was his baserunning. He’s been working with new first base coach and former Rangers outfielder Travis Jankowski on stealing bases. But, just as importantly, he’s been working on his baserunning form. Some of his injuries last season were lower leg and a change in stride could help, too.

“We were working on my running form as well,” Burger said. “I kind of get backside which puts a lot of pressure on my quad and so a lot of this offseason was working on that that gait and that running form as well.”

The Rangers and Burger settled in his first year of arbitration, and part of the attraction with him was the level of team control. But last season he was well below the slugging he showed the previous two seasons. He hit 34 home runs in 2023 and 28 the following season, Burger struggled with his chase rate, whiff rate and strikeout rate last season. Notably, his chase rate was 39.9%, which was in the fourth percentile in baseball. He’s intent on turning that round in 2026.

“It’s just trying to be as free as possible,” Burger said. “I think I made some really good adjustments with my pre-pitch stance that’s going to allow me to have that freedom back.”