Rangers Boss Has Plan to Prepare Andrew McCutchen for Spring Training Debut

Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker has a habit. Early in spring training, especially when he’s talking about a minor injury or a player’s ramp-up, he’ll remind everyone around him that it’s “February 26” or whatever that date it.

Well, it’s not February anymore and Schumaker knows it. A slow ramp-up for former National League MVP Andrew McCutchen won’t cut it after he signed a minor league deal to join the Rangers on Friday.

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“You know, we're at that point of camp where we can't take too long for him to work,” Schumaker said.

Skip Schumaker’s Plan for Andrew McCutchen

Andrew McCutchen joins @JaredSandler on his first day in camp ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/uuYLsDOiGO
— Rangers Sports Network (@RangersSNtv) March 6, 2026

The 39-year-old outfielder arrived in Surprise, Ariz., on Friday and worked the batting cages for the first time. He said on arrival that he hadn’t had much live batting practice in Pittsburgh this winter but had done everything else to stay in shape.

Schumaker said that with minor leagues games going on at Surprise’s back fields, it could help McCutchen’s ramp-up. He said he expected McCutchen to need a couple of days to get live batting practice and live outfield work before he gets into a game.

The first-year Rangers manager doesn’t like to set targets for players during spring training. But he set a range for when he hopes McCutchen can hit the field in a live spring training game.

“I think Chicago, Anaheim and San Diego, I think those last three games before the off day, he'll probably be in one or two of those,” he said.

That could put McCutchen on the field as early as Sunday when the Rangers host the Los Angeles Angels in a split-squad game. Texas goes to San Diego on Monday and then hosts the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday before the off day. If that works it, it gives McCutchen 14 game days to prove he has something to offer.

McCutchen was mostly a designated hitter for his last three seasons in Pittsburgh, but he has a long career of playing in the outfield. Schumaker said that McCutchen will play in the field in spring training. With Joc Pederson as the DH against right-handed pitching, McCutchen being able to play in the field is a pre-requisite.

“I think he has to show that he can play some [outfield],” Schumaker said. “I'm not looking for him to be an everyday outfielder. But I do feel like flexibility off the bench is needed for him to make the club. So, him playing a corner outfield spot and you the DH spot would be extremely valuable to us.”

Schumaker played against McCutchen when he was with the St. Louis Cardinals, so he knows how dangerous a hitter the Pirates star can be.

His career slash is .271/.365/.457/.822 with 332 home runs and 1,152 RBI over 17 seasons. He’s a five-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, and the NL Most Valuable Player in 2013. He is MLB’s active leader in games played (2,262) and at bats (8350), while ranking in the top five in runs (2nd, 1290), walks (2nd, 1183), and hits (3rd, 2266). He’s one of 11 players in MLB history to slug 10-or-more home runs in each of his first 17 seasons.