Skip Schumaker’s Closer Decision Matters More Than Rangers Fans Might Think

When the ninth inning came along on Monday night, Texas Rangers Skip Schumaker made an interesting call.

Texas Rangers pitcher Tyler Alexander. | Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images

If you're looking for any miss for the Texas Rangers this offseason it would be acquiring a reliable closer.

Texas tried the cheap route with former All-Star Alexis Diaz, but he showed little in spring training and is at Triple-A Round Rock, where he threw a scoreless inning in his first appearance.

But throughout spring training new manager Skip Schumaker made it clear Robert Garcia and Chris Martin would get the early opportunities to close games. In their first opportunity on Saturday in Philadelphia, they blew the save.

In that extra-inning win over the Phillies, Tyler Alexander claimed the save. So, on Monday, when the Rangers faced another save situation against the Baltimore Orioles, Schumaker turned to Alexander. That may tell us something about how he feels about the role early in the season.

Tyler Alexander, Closer?

Texas Rangers relief pitcher Tyler Alexander and catcher Danny Jansen. | Kyle Ross-Imagn Images

Closer is one of the toughest jobs in baseball. It's also one of the streakiest. When teams don't have a go-to guy at an elite level, many tend to ride the hot hand. Right now, the left-hander, who was a middle reliever with two teams last season, appears to be the hot hand.

His outing on Saturday had some desperation to it. Schumaker didn't have many options left in the bullpen. But the lefty delivered him a win, allowing a hit, an unearned run and no walks. He struck out one.

Monday’s outing was much cleaner — one inning, no hits, no runs, no walks or strikeouts, nine pitches with six strikes. Unlike Garcia and Martin on Saturday, it was not an adventurous outing.

Workload had something to do with the decision, certainly. Both Garcia and Martin threw on back-to-back days in Philadelphia. Most managers don't want closers or set-up men pitching three days in a row. With no off day between the Phillies and Orioles series, it's not uncommon for a manager like Schumaker to gravitate to a different reliever in that situation. The fact that Alexander got it done on Saturday gave him a level of trust that Alexander could do it again.

The 31-year-old Alexander has spent his entire career as either a long reliever or a spot starter. In 198 games he's thrown 549.2 innings. With the Detroit Tigers from 2019-23 he never recorded a save. Same goes for his time with Tampa Bay in 2024. He finally got his first save opportunities with Milwaukee and the Chicago White Sox in 2025. That save, on April 20, comes with a caveat — it was a three-inning save in a 14-1 win.

So the reality is that Alexander had limited experiences in those situations and he thrived. In doing so, he’s emerged as a surprise new closing option in the bullpen and that’s why, at least early this season, Schumaker’s decision on Monday matters.