What We Got Right—and Wrong—About the Rangers After 20 Games

The Texas Rangers are wrapping up their road trip in Seattle this weekend, their last leg of a three-series road trip that is one of the longest of the year.

The Rangers have now played 20 games, and they’ve been at the top of the American League West Division for the last week. It’s a tight race and no one has taken control of it yet. If the Rangers can get their offense moving at home next week, it’s a good chance for them to build some distance between them and the field.

Now, here are two things we got right and two things we got wrong after 20 games of the season.

What We Got Right

Nimmo found ANOTHER leadoff homer! #AllForTX pic.twitter.com/q7issz4JZs
— Texas Rangers (@Rangers) April 18, 2026

That Brandon Nimmo Would Impact the Lineup

The Rangers traded Marcus Simien to the Mets with the belief that Nimmo would have an impact on their lineup, most notably on-base percentage.

The Rangers decided to move Nimmo to leadoff and he’s been terrific. After 20 games he slashed with X home runs and ex RBI. The on-base percentage is one of the best in baseball and it’s making a difference. Texas recently moved Corey Seager into the No. 2 spot, giving Texas a consistent slugger that can take advantage of Nimmo getting on base often.

Of course, if Nimmo keeps hitting leadoff home runs like he did in Friday’s game, that helps too.

Slotting MacKenzie Gore at No. 3 Starter

One of the big question marks going into the season was where the Rangers might slide in left-hander MacKenzie Gore. That was thrown further into flux when right-hander Jacob deGrom experienced neck stiffness before his initial start and was pushed back. But the Rangers see the value of putting Gore behind two right-handers, deGrom and Nathan Eovaldi, and ahead of their other two right-handers, Jack Leiter and Kumar Rocker.

In three starts Gore is 2-1 with a 3.00 ERA, with 30 strikeouts and 11 walks in 21 innings. He’s the perfect counterbalance to a decidedly right-handed rotation.

What We Got Wrong

Texas Rangers pitcher Robert Garcia throws a baseball. — Texas Rangers pitcher Robert Garcia. | Dennis Lee-Imagn Images

That the Co-Closer Thing ‘Might’ Work

The biggest risk the Rangers took this offseason was not addressing the ninth inning with an experienced closer. The Rangers opted to go with a two-headed monster of Robert Garcia, the left-hander acquired last offseason for Nathaniel Lowe, and 39-year-old right-hander Chris Martin, who has less than 20 saves in his career.

It has not worked out. Martin is on the injured list with a right shoulder impingement. Garcia has now been relegated to non-leverage duty. Both have blown a save and lost a tie game this season. Meanwhile, the saves have been spread among three other relievers.

It just goes to show how volatile closing games can be and how shaky the faith in those pitchers can become.

Josh Smith at Second Base

Josh Smith won the competition to replace Simien at second base on merit. He had a terrific spring at the plate and showed off the above-average defense that has made him one of the Rangers’ most reliable defenders the past three seasons, no matter what position he played.

But the results in the regular season have been lacking. And, frankly, unexpected.

He’s hit below .200 so far, hasn’t hit a home run and has the lowest on-base percentage of his career to this point. His fielding has been solid, but he has minus-2 defensive runs saved. He’s at risk of ceding time to Ezequiel Duran, who is hitting better and can play the same position.

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