Texas Rangers' New Addition Shows Substantial Promise with Strong Spring Training

Of all the trades that occurred during the off-season, the deal that brought Jake Burger to the Texas Rangers from the Miami Marlins stands out as one of the more under-the-radar moves.

In exchange for the 28-year-old corner infielder, the Rangers sent three prospects to Miami: Echedry Vargas, Texas’ 17th ranked prospect, former top international prospect Max Acosta and left-handed pitcher Brayan Mendoza.

Burger is expected to secure the first base position but can also serve as insurance for rookie third baseman Josh Jung. While this addition will provide stability, Burger was primarily acquired for his power. A former first-round draft pick, selected No. 11 overall by the Chicago White Sox in 2017, he has hit 63 home runs and maintains a .250 batting average over the last two seasons.

So far this spring, Burger is showing that Texas made the right choice in acquiring him as a key contributor to their pursuit of the American League West title. In just 13 at-bats, he has recorded five hits, driven in four runs, and homered twice, posting an impressive 1.313 on-base plus slugging (OPS). Even more noteworthy is that he has struck out only twice in his 15 plate appearances.

Throughout his first two professional seasons, Burger has carried a strikeout rate of over 25 percent. Interestingly, he displayed reverse splits in 2024, batting .264 in 363 at-bats against right-handed pitchers while hitting .221 against left-handed pitchers. To maximize his power potential, he will need to lower both his whiff rate and chase rate.

Burger is the type of player who does not need to pull the ball to exit velocity, he has power to all fields. How well he handles breaking pitches will be crucial in his development into one of the league's premier sluggers.

Additionally, Burger brings valuable intangibles to the team. By all accounts, he is a great teammate and has the potential to become a fan favorite with the Rangers.

When asked about his new clubhouse environment, “Yeah, this feels, in a sense, like a college clubhouse. Everybody’s caring for each other, and it doesn’t feel like pro ball. You feel like you got everybody’s back. That’s the culture you wanna play in, and that’s a culture that wins. If everybody’s pulling from the same side of the rope, that’s a scary team to play day-in and day-out,” said Burger.

The last piece to the Burger puzzle is that Texas has control of his contract for the next four years. The trade was not for one-year-rental. Burger can easily become a mainstay at first base for years to come.

Rangers’ fans hope that will be the case.

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