Texas Rangers Newly Acquired Signing Seeing Success Due to Coaching Staff

On paper, the Texas Rangers have one of the best rosters in baseball.

Chris Young did a wonderful job adding some pop to the lineup, trading for Jake Burger from the Miami Marlins to take over at first base and signing Joc Pederson in free agency to handle a bulk of the at-bats at designated hitter.

The starting rotation depth is going to be challenged right out the gate with Jon Gray on the injured list after getting hit with a comebacker and Cody Bradford dealing with left elbow soreness.

That puts even more pressure on veterans such as Jacob deGrom and Tyler Mahle, who are both returning from injury, to stay healthy. Recent signing Patrick Corbin hasn’t produced much in recent years but at least he can be counted on to take the ball and eat some innings.

The only real concern the team has looks to be in their bullpen.

David Robertson, Jose Leclerc and Kirby Yates led the team with 68, 64 and 61 appearances in 2024. All three are not back in 2025 along with their trade deadline acquisition, Andrew Chafin.

Virtually the entire bullpen was rebuilt this offseason with Chris Martin, Shawn Armstrong, Hoby Milner Jacob Webb and Luke Jackson being signed to one-year deals.

A quantity-over-quality approach may have been used to fill out the relief staff and the lack of an experienced late-game option is a concern heading into the year.

Martin, the 38-year-old veteran, is expected to get the first crack at the closer’s job. But given his track record and the lack of durability he has exhibited during his career, others need to be ready to step up.

One player to keep an eye on in that regard is lefty Robert Garcia, who was acquired from the Washington Nationals in exchange for first baseman Nathaniel Lowe.

It was the move that Jim Bowden of The Athletic (paid subscription required) thought was their best under-the-radar acquisition of the offseason. He believes Garcia will be taken to another level by the coaching staff.

“The acquisition of lefty reliever Robert Garcia. I think Rangers pitching coach Mike Maddux will be able to improve his delivery and thus his command and control,” the former MLB executive wrote.

On the surface, he doesn’t look like an impact addition to the team’s pitching staff.

Across 72 appearances in 2024 and 59.2 innings he had a 4.22 ERA. But, there were some real positives to take away from his performance, such as the 75 strikeouts. His 2.38 FIP would hint that he performed much better on the mound than his raw statistics would indicate.

In spring training the work he has been doing seems to be paying off with 6.1 innings pitched and only one hit allowed to go along with four strikeouts and three walks.

As long as the spike in walks is just a blip in the radar as he ramps up for the season, Garcia looks poised to be a breakout candidate.